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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 163 records · Page 9

Heat transfer in rotating serpentine passages with trips normal to the flow

Experiments were conducted to determine the effects of buoyancy and Coriolis forces on heat transfer in turbine blade internal coolant passages. The experiments were conducted with a large scale, multipass, heat transfer model with both radially inward and outward flow. Trip strips on the leading and trailing surfaces of the radial coolant passages were used to produce the rough walls. An analysis of the governing flow equations showed that four parameters influence the heat transfer in rotating passages: coolant-to-wall temperature ratio, Rossby number, Reynolds number, and radius-to-passage hydraulic diameter ratio. The first three of these four parameters were varied over ranges which are typical of advanced gas turbine engine operating conditions. Results were correlated and compared to previous results from stationary and rotating similar models with trip strips. The heat transfer coefficients on surfaces, where the heat increased with rotation and buoyancy, varied by as much as a factor of four. Maximum values of the heat transfer coefficients with high rotation were only slightly above the highest levels obtained with the smooth wall model. The heat transfer coefficients on surfaces, where the heat transfer decreased with rotation, varied by as much as a factor of three due to rotation and buoyancy. It was concluded that both Coriolis and buoyancy effects must be considered in turbine blade cooling designs with trip strips and that the effects of rotation were markedly different depending upon the flow direction.

Wagner, J. H.↗

Optimization of a Remote Sensing Energy Balance Method over Different Canopy Applied at Global Scale

Parameterization methods which calculate turbulent heat and water fluxes with thermal remote sensing data were evaluated in the revised remote sensing surface energy balance system (SEBS) model (Chen et al., 2013). The model calculates sensible heat (H) based on the Monin-Obukhov similarity theory (MOST) and determines latent heat (LE) as the residual of energy balance. We examined the uncertainties of H and LE in the SEBS model due to five key parameters at the local station point scale. Observations at 27 flux towers located in seven land cover types (needle-leaf forest, broad leaf forest, shrub, savanna, grassland, cropland, and sparsely vegetated land) and an artificial intelligence particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm was combined to calibrate the five parameters (leaf drag coefficient, leaf heat transfer coefficients, roughness length for soil, and two parameters for ground heat calculation) in the SEBS model. The root-mean-square error at the site scale was reduced by 9 W/sq.m for H, and 92 W/sq.m for LE, and their correlation coefficients were increased by 0.07 (H) and 0.11 (LE) after using the calibrated parameters. The updated model validation was further conducted globally for the remotely sensed evapotranspiration (ET) calculations. Overestimation of SEBS global ET was significantly improved by using the optimized values of the parameters. The results suggested PSO was able to consistently locate the global optimum of the SEBS model, and appears to be capable of solving the ET model optimization problem.

Chen, Xuelong↗

Hyperspectral Radiative Transfer Modeling to Explore the Combined Retrieval of Biophysical Parameters and Canopy Fluorescence from FLEX - Sentinel-3 Tandem Mission Multi-Sensor Data

The FLuorescence EXplorer (FLEX) satellite mission, selected as ESA's 8th Earth Explorer, has been designed forthe measurement of sun-induced fluorescence (F) spectra emitted by plants. This will be accomplished through amulti-sensor approach by placing it in a common orbit in tandem with the Sentinel-3 (S3) mission, which willhave two optical sensors on board, OLCI (Ocean and Land Colour Instrument) and SLSTR (Sea and Land SurfaceTemperature Radiometer) to complement FLEX. These S3 instruments will be used in combination with theimaging spectrometers on board FLEX to provide data useful for atmospheric correction of FLEX data. However,a fully synergetic approach, i.e. by exploiting the spectral and directional information from all tandem missioninstruments together, is an attractive alternative which is explored in this paper. By employing all combined topof-atmosphere (TOA) spectral radiance data, one can (i) characterize the relevant optical properties of the atmosphere,(ii) retrieve biophysical canopy properties including the associated reflectance anisotropy, and (iii)retrieve a more accurate and consistent canopy F.Regarding retrieval methods, Fraunhofer Line Depth (FLD) and Spectral Fitting (SF) are well-known techniquesapplied to hyperspectral data. Both methods depend on a high spectral resolution and assume aLambertian (isotropic) canopy reflectance. However, most vegetation canopies are non-Lambertian. This impliesthat, in particular when ignoring the anisotropic surface reflection, substantial retrieval errors can occur due tothe interaction between atmospheric absorption bands and surface reflectance anisotropy. In this paper, a novelmethod based on spectral radiative transfer (RT) modeling is proposed, in which coupled RT models are used tosimulate TOA radiance spectra. These are then matched with ‘measured' spectra in order to retrieve surfacefluorescence, along with a suite of biophysical parameters, by model inversion through optimization. By applyingcoupled RT models of the soil-leaf-canopy and the surface-atmosphere systems, TOA radiance spectra canbe simulated for all optical sensors of this tandem mission. In this way, complex effects due to surface reflectanceanisotropy and the spectral sampling by the various instruments, which are difficult to compensate for in the endproducts, are properly taken into account by their incorporation in the forward modeling. Next, by model inversionof TOA radiance data via optimization, the most accurate F retrievals can be achieved in a consistentmanner, along with important canopy level biophysical parameters that may help interpret the F spectrum, suchas chlorophyll content and leaf area index (LAI). The potential of this approach has been explored in a numericalexperiment, and the results are presented in this paper. We find that, with the assumed well-characterized andplausible FLEX/S3 instrument performances, the simultaneous retrieval of biophysical canopy parameters and Fspectra would be possible with a remarkable accuracy, provided the correct atmospheric characterization isavailable.

Verhoef, Wouter↗

Heat transfer in rotating serpentine passages with trips skewed to the flow

Experiments were conducted to determine the effects of buoyancy and Coriolis forces on heat transfer in turbine blade internal coolant passages. The experiments were conducted with a large scale, multi-pass, heat transfer model with both radially inward and outward flow. Trip strips, skewed at 45 deg to the flow direction, were machined on the leading and trailing surfaces of the radial coolant passages. An analysis of the governing flow equations showed that four parameters influence the heat transfer in rotating passages: coolant-to-wall temperature, rotation number, Reynolds number, and radius-to-passage hydraulic diameter ratio. The first three of these four parameters were varied over ranges which are typical of advanced gas turbine engine operating conditions. Results were correlated and compared to previous results from similar stationary and rotating models with smooth walls and with trip strips normal to the flow direction. The heat transfer coefficients on surfaces, where the heat transfer decreased with rotation and buoyancy, decreased to as low as 40 percent of the value without rotation. However, the maximum values of the heat transfer coefficients with high rotation were only slightly above the highest levels previously obtained with the smooth wall models. It was concluded that (1) both Coriolis and buoyancy effects must be considered in turbine blade cooling designs with trip strips, (2) the effects of rotation are markedly different depending upon the flow direction, and (3) the heat transfer with skewed trip strips is less sensitive to buoyancy than the heat transfer in models with either smooth or normal trips. Therefore, skewed trip strips rather than normal trip strips are recommended and geometry-specific tests are required for accurate design information.

Johnson, B. V.↗

Control of the SCOLE configuration using distributed parameter models

A continuum model for the SCOLE configuration has been derived using transfer matrices. Controller designs for distributed parameter systems have been analyzed. Pole-assignment controller design is considered easy to implement but stability is not guaranteed. An explicit transfer function of dynamic controllers has been obtained and no model reduction is required before the controller is realized. One specific LQG controller for continuum models had been derived, but other optimal controllers for more general performances need to be studied.

Hsiao, Min-Hung↗

Transonic laminar boundary layers with surface curvature.

The effect of surface curvature (both longitudinal and transverse) and the associated pressure gradient across the flow is investigated analytically for a laminar boundary layer subjected to pressure gradients along the flow. Property variation which results from heat transfer and compressibility is taken into account. Numerical solutions of the boundary layer equations are obtained for locally similar sonic flow through the throat of a nozzle for a range of flow conditions and for various shaped nozzle surfaces with different amounts of wall cooling. A few solutions were also obtained for the analogous flow around the shoulder of a flat-faced body in a supersonic flow. The effect of various parameters that arise in the equations upon application of the Levy-Mangler transformation are investigated and discussed with respect to their influence on the velocity and total enthalpy profiles and the corresponding profile slopes at the surface to which the shear stress and heat transfer are related. An important finding is that at throat Reynolds numbers less than 100,000 the heat transfer parameter at a nozzle throat decreases as the throat radius of curvature decreases.

Back, L. H.↗

Optimization of the lithium/thionyl chloride battery

A 1-D math model for the lithium/thionyl chloride primary cell is used in conjunction with a parameter estimation technique in order to estimate the electro-kinetic parameters of this electrochemical system. The electro-kinetic parameters include the anodic transfer coefficient and exchange current density of the lithium oxidation, alpha sub a,1 and i sub o,i,ref, the cathodic transfer coefficient and the effective exchange current density of the thionyl chloride reduction, alpha sub c,2 and a sup o i sub o,2,ref, and a morphology parameter, Xi. The parameter estimation is performed on simulated data first in order to gain confidence in the method. Data, reported in the literature, for a high rate discharge of an experimental lithium/thionyl chloride cell is used for an analysis.

White, Ralph E.↗

Parameter margins for stabilized conservative multilinear systems

Simple and elegant derivations of recent results concerning the computation of infinity-norm real-parameter margins for stabilized, mass-spring dynamical systems with the masses and the spring constraints as uncertain parameters are presented. The authors introduce the concept of critical frequency and gain for stabilized conservative systems whose uncertain parameters do not necessarily appear multilinearly in the numerator and denominator of the plant transfer function. An approach to parameter margin computation is presented.

Warren, Wayne↗

An adaptive control scheme for a flexible manipulator

The problem of controlling a single link flexible manipulator is considered. A self-tuning adaptive control scheme is proposed which consists of a least squares on-line parameter identification of an equivalent linear model followed by a tuning of the gains of a pole placement controller using the parameter estimates. Since the initial parameter values for this model are assumed unknown, the use of arbitrarily chosen initial parameter estimates in the adaptive controller would result in undesirable transient effects. Hence, the initial stage control is carried out with a PID controller. Once the identified parameters have converged, control is transferred to the adaptive controller. Naturally, the relevant issues in this scheme are tests for parameter convergence and minimization of overshoots during control switch-over. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme, simulation results are presented with an analytical nonlinear dynamic model of a single link flexible manipulator.

Yang, T. C.↗

Flash Cracking Reactor for Waste Plastic Processing

Conversion of waste plastic to energy is a growing problem that is especially acute in space exploration applications. Moreover, utilization of heavy hydrocarbon resources (wastes, waxes, etc.) as fuels and chemicals will be a growing need in the future. Existing technologies require a trade-off between product selectivity and feedstock conversion. The objective of this work was to maintain high plastic-to-fuel conversion without sacrificing the liquid yield. The developed technology accomplishes this goal with a combined understanding of thermodynamics, reaction rates, and mass transport to achieve high feed conversion without sacrificing product selectivity. The innovation requires a reaction vessel, hydrocarbon feed, gas feed, and pressure and temperature control equipment. Depending on the feedstock and desired product distribution, catalyst can be added. The reactor is heated to the desired tempera ture, pressurized to the desired pressure, and subject to a sweep flow at the optimized superficial velocity. Software developed under this project can be used to determine optimal values for these parameters. Product is vaporized, transferred to a receiver, and cooled to a liquid - a form suitable for long-term storage as a fuel or chemical. An important NASA application is the use of solar energy to convert waste plastic into a form that can be utilized during periods of low solar energy flux. Unlike previous work in this field, this innovation uses thermodynamic, mass transport, and reaction parameters to tune product distribution of pyrolysis cracking. Previous work in this field has used some of these variables, but never all in conjunction for process optimization. This method is useful for municipal waste incinerator operators and gas-to-liquids companies.

Timko, Michael T.↗

Surface Pressures and Heat Transfer on Unswept Blunt Plates in Helium at High Mach Numbers

Pressure distributions and local convective heat-transfer coefficients on a flat plate at zero angle of attack were measured in helium. Data were obtained with various amounts of leading-edge bluntness at Mach numbers of 12.5 and 14.7. The pressures on a sharp leading-edged plate were not influenced by the leading edge and were predicted by the first-order, hypersonic, weak-interaction theory. Pressures on blunt plates were correlated by introducing the leading-edge Reynolds number as a parameter. Measured heat-transfer coefficients on the sharp plate agreed with predictions obtained form existing exact solutions for hear transfer across the laminar boundary layer. For the blunt plates a comparison of theory with experiment indicated that more knowledge of the flow field between the sock wave and plate surface is necessary before an adequate prediction of convective heat transfer can be made. Shock-wave shapes for the blun plates at a Mach number 12.5 and zero angle of attack were measured. At distances between 2 and 60 leading-edge thicknesses from the shock vertex, the shock-wave shapes were found to be represented by a modified form of the blast-wave analogy.

Marvin, Joseph G.↗

The application of dimensional analysis to the problem of solar wind-magnetosphere energy coupling

The constraints imposed by dimensional analysis are used to find how the solar wind-magnetosphere energy transfer rate depends upon interplanetary parameters. The analyses assume that only magnetohydrodynamic processes are important in controlling the rate of energy transfer. The study utilizes ISEE-3 solar wind observations, the AE index, and UT from three 10-day intervals during the International Magnetospheric Study. Simple linear regression and histogram techniques are used to find the value of the magnetohydrodynamic coupling exponent, alpha, which is consistent with observations of magnetospheric response. Once alpha is estimated, the form of the solar wind energy transfer rate is obtained by substitution into an equation of the interplanetary variables whose exponents depend upon alpha.

Bargatze, L. F.↗

Heat Transfer Modeling for Rigid High-Temperature Fibrous Insulation

Combined radiation and conduction heat transfer through a high-temperature, high-porosity, rigid multiple-fiber fibrous insulation was modeled using a thermal model previously used to model heat transfer in flexible single-fiber fibrous insulation. The rigid insulation studied was alumina enhanced thermal barrier (AETB) at densities between 130 and 260 kilograms per cubic meter. The model consists of using the diffusion approximation for radiation heat transfer, a semi-empirical solid conduction model, and a standard gas conduction model. The relevant parameters needed for the heat transfer model were estimated from steady-state thermal measurements in nitrogen gas at various temperatures and environmental pressures. The heat transfer modeling methodology was evaluated by comparison with standard thermal conductivity measurements, and steady-state thermal measurements in helium and carbon dioxide gases. The heat transfer model is applicable over the temperature range of 300 to 1360 K, pressure range of 0.133 to 101.3 x 10(exp 3) Pa, and over the insulation density range of 130 to 260 kilograms per cubic meter in various gaseous environments.

Daryabeigi, Kamran↗

Radiative transfer modelling of discontinuous tree canopies at microwave frequencies

Development of a first-order radiative transfer model for predicting backscatter from tree canopies has been underway at the University of Michigan Radiation Laboratory for some time. This model is known as the Michigan Microwave Canopy Scattering (MIMICS) model. This article presents the second-generation MIMICS model (MIMICS II) which accounts for canopies with discontinuous (open) crown layer geometries. MIMICS II models open crown layers by treating the location, size, and shape of the individual tree crowns as random variables. The backscattering coefficients for the canopy are then determined by introducing statistics derived from these parameters into the radiative transfer solution. Application of the radiative transfer equations to the discontinuous canopy geometry is presented. The resulting model is a robust fully polarimetric solution that is applicable over a wide variety of canopy architectures. Model simulations are compared to results generated with the continuous canopy model. The effect of the open crown geometry is found to be most significant at shallow incidence angles and at high frequencies for trees with well-developed crowns. Under these conditions, the gaps in the crown layer give rise to a notable increase in crown layer transmissivity which allows the radar to see through to the lower layers of the canopy more easily, thereby directly affecting the backscatter contribution of the trunks and ground.

Mcdonald, K. C.↗

Kinetics and transport at AMTEC electrodes. II - Temperature dependence of the interfacial impedance of Na(g)/porous Mo/Na-Beta-double prime alumina

The exchange current, transfer coefficient, mass-transport parameters, and electrode capacitance at the Na(g)/porous Mo/Na-Beta-double prime alumina solid electrolyte (BASE) phase boundary have been evaluated from 740 to 1220 K. The transfer coefficient exhibits a value close to 0.5 and the exchange current is dominated by collision frequency, with no significant activation energy. Since the porous Mp-electrode adopts a fairly regular microstructure on the BASE surface, the magnitude of the exchange current of mature electrodes directly depends on the actual contact zone of the porous metal film with the BASE ceramic, and decreases slightly as grain growth occurs. The exchange currents and the mass-transport parameters derived for very porous, thin Mo electrodes indicate that the charge-transfer reaction occurs at a small fraction of the interface. High-frequency limiting capacitance and resistance values due to the interface show potential dependence and a value on the order of 1 F/sq m and 0.1-1.0 Ohm-sq cm.

Williams, R. M.↗

A reliable algorithm for optimal control synthesis

In recent years, powerful design tools for linear time-invariant multivariable control systems have been developed based on direct parameter optimization. In this report, an algorithm for reliable optimal control synthesis using parameter optimization is presented. Specifically, a robust numerical algorithm is developed for the evaluation of the H(sup 2)-like cost functional and its gradients with respect to the controller design parameters. The method is specifically designed to handle defective degenerate systems and is based on the well-known Pade series approximation of the matrix exponential. Numerical test problems in control synthesis for simple mechanical systems and for a flexible structure with densely packed modes illustrate positively the reliability of this method when compared to a method based on diagonalization. Several types of cost functions have been considered: a cost function for robust control consisting of a linear combination of quadratic objectives for deterministic and random disturbances, and one representing an upper bound on the quadratic objective for worst case initial conditions. Finally, a framework for multivariable control synthesis has been developed combining the concept of closed-loop transfer recovery with numerical parameter optimization. The procedure enables designers to synthesize not only observer-based controllers but also controllers of arbitrary order and structure. Numerical design solutions rely heavily on the robust algorithm due to the high order of the synthesis model and the presence of near-overlapping modes. The design approach is successfully applied to the design of a high-bandwidth control system for a rotorcraft.

Vansteenwyk, Brett↗

Heat Transfer and Interfacial Flow Physics of Microgravity Flow Boiling in Single-Side-Heated Rectangular Channel with Subcooled Inlet Conditions – Experiments Onboard the International Space Station

This study is the culmination of a long-term collaborative effort between researchers from the Purdue University Boiling and Two-Phase Flow Laboratory (PU-BTPFL) and the NASA Glenn Research Center to investigate gravitational effects on flow boiling and flow condensation. The science and design concepts for this large-scale effort were initiated in 2011 and included several studies detailing various aspects of two-phase fluid physics in both Earth gravity and microgravity, culminating in construction of the large-scale experimental facility named “Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment (FBCE)”. The experiment was launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in August 2021. Following the successful installation of FBCE, equipped with the Flow Boiling Module (FBM), onboard the ISS and completion of several safety checks, flow boiling experiments were performed for five months from February 2022 until July 2022. This resulted in a large flow boiling database covering broad ranges of operating parameters and heating configurations spanning several research objectives. This study investigates microgravity flow boiling of n-perfluorohexane with subcooled inlet in a single-side-heated rectangular channel of dimensions 114.6-mm heated length, 2.5-mm heated width, and 5.0-mm height. Key operating parameters investigated are mass velocity (199.90 – 3200.13 kg/m 2 s), inlet subcooling (0.10 – 45.76°C), and inlet pressure (113.30 – 164.29 kPa). Images and image sequences acquired via high-speed-video are presented to elucidate the interfacial flow physics. To analyze and explain the effects of various parameters in microgravity, heat transfer results are presented as flow boiling curves, streamwise profiles of wall temperature and heat transfer coefficient, and parametric trends of local and averaged heat transfer coefficient. Mass velocity and inlet subcooling significantly influenced most of the aforementioned aspects of flow boiling, whereas effects of inlet pressure were comparatively insignificant. Although the data and observed flow physics might be different, the parametric effects and trends in microgravity are similar to vertical upflow in Earth gravity. Some cases, especially low mass velocities, high heat fluxes, and large degrees of inlet subcooling, experienced temporally anomalous flow behaviors caused by two-phase flow instabilities manifesting as flow reversals and resulted in deviations in overall trends. Severe thermodynamic non-equilibrium is observed throughout the channel. Overall, FBCE’s ISS experiments were successful for subcooled inlet with single-sided heating of rectangular channel, and the collected data well established the various effects on flow boiling physics in highly controlled long-term microgravity conditions.

flow boiling↗