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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 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1971

Acoustic testing of a 1.5 pressure ratio low tip speed fan with casing tip bleed (QEP Fan B scale model)

A scale model of the bypass flow region of a 1.5 pressure ratio, single stage, low tip speed fan was tested with a rotor tip casing bleed slot to determine its effects on noise generation. The bleed slot was located 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) upstream of the rotor leading edge and was configured to be a continuous opening around the circumference. The bleed manifold system was operated over a range of bleed rates corresponding to as much as 6% of the fan flow at approach thrust and 4.25% of the fan flow at takeoff thrust. Acoustic results indicate that a bleed rate of 4% of the fan flow reduces the fan maximum approach 200 foot (61.0 m) sideline PNL 0.5 PNdB and the corresponding takeoff thrust noise 1.1 PNdB below the level with zero bleed. However, comparison of the standard casing (no bleed slot) and the slotted bleed casing with zero bleed shows that the bleed slot itself caused a noise increase.

Kazin, S. B.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Performance of low-pressure-ratio low-tip-speed fan stage with blade tip solidity of 0.65

The overall and blade-element performance of a low pressure ratio, low tip speed fan stage is presented over the stable operating range at rotative speeds from 90 to 120 percent of design speed. Stage peak efficiency of 0.927 was obtained at a weight flow of 32.4 kg/sec (190.31 kg/sec/sq m of annulus area) and a pressure ratio of 1.134. The stall margin at design speed and peak efficiency was 15.3 percent.

Kovich, G.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Feasibility of wing shielding of the airplane interior from the shock noise generated by supersonic tip speed propellers

A high tip speed turboprop is being considered as a future energy conservative airplane. The high tip speed of the propeller, combined with the speed of the airplane, results in supersonic relative flow on the propeller tips. These supersonic blade sections could generate noise that is a cabin environment problem. The feasibility of using wing shielding to lessen the impact of this supersonic propeller noise was investigated. An analytical model is chosen which considers that shock waves are associated with the propeller tip flow and indicates how they would be prevented from impinging on the airplane fuselage. An example calculation is performed where a swept wing is used to shield the fuselage from significant portions of the propeller shock waves.

Dittmar, J. H.↗
NASA NTRS2000

A Method to Further Reduce the Perceived Noise of Low Tip Speed Fans

The use of low tip speed, high bypass ratio fans is a method for reducing the noise of turbofan jet engines. These fans typically have a low number of rotor blades and a number of stator vanes sufficient to achieve cut-off of the blade passing tone. Their perceived noise levels are typically dominated by broadband noise caused by the rotor wake turbulence - stator interaction mechanism. A 106 bladed, 1100 ft/sec takeoff tip speed fan, the Alternative Low Noise Fan, has been tested and shown to have reduced broadband noise. This reduced noise is believed to be the result of the high rotor blade number. Although this fan with 106 blades would not be practical with materials as they exist today, a fan with 50 or so blades could be practically realized. A noise estimate has indicated that such a 50 bladed, low tip speed fan could be 2 to 3 EPNdB quieter than an 18 bladed fan. If achieved, this level of noise reduction would be significant and points to the use of a high blade number, low tip speed fan as a possible configuration for reduced fan noise.

Dittmar, James H.↗
NASA NTRS1977

A parametric investigation of an existing supersonic relative tip speed propeller noise model

A high tip speed turboprop is being considered as a future energy conservative airplane. The high tip speed of the propeller combined with the cruise speed of the airplane may result in supersonic relative flow on the propeller tips. These supersonic blade sections could generate noise that is a cabin environment problem. An existing supersonic propeller noise model was parametrically investigated to identify and evaluate the noise reduction variables. Both independent and interdependent parameter variations (constant propeller thrust) were performed. The noise reductions indicated by the independent investigation varied from sizable in the case of reducing Mach number to minimal for adjusting the thickness and loading distributions. The noise reduction possibilities of decreasing relative Mach number were further investigated during the interdependent variations. The interdependent investigation indicated that significant noise reductions could be achieved by increasing the propeller diameter and/or increasing the number of propeller blades while maintaining a constant propeller thrust.

Dittmar, J. H.↗
NASA NTRS1960

Effect of Blade Cutout on Power Required by Helicopters Operating at High Tip-Speed Ratios

A numerical study was made of the effects of blade cutout on the power required by a sample helicopter rotor traveling at tip-speed ratios of 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5. The amount of cutout varied from 0 to 0.5 of the rotor radius and the calculations were carried out for a thrust coefficient-solidity ratio of 0.04. In these calculations the blade within the cutout radius was assumed to have zero chord. The effect of such cutout on profile-drag power ranged from almost no effect at a tip-speed ratio of 0.3 to as much as a 60 percent reduction at a tip-speed ratio of 0.5. Optimum cutout was about 0.3 of the rotor radius. Part of the large power reduction at a tip-speed ratio of 0.5 resulted from a reduction in tip-region stall, brought about by cutout. For tip-speed ratios greater than 0.3, cutout also effected a significant increase in the ability of the rotor to overcome helicopter parasite drag. It is thus seen that the adverse trends (at high tip-speed ratios) indicated by the uniform-chord theoretical charts are caused in large measure by the center portion of the rotor. The extent to which a modified-design rotor can actually be made more efficient at high speeds than a uniform-chord rotor will depend in practice on the degree of success in minimizing the blade plan form near the center and on special modifications in center-section profiles. A few suggestions and estimates in regard to such modifications are included herein.

Gessow, Alfred↗
NASA NTRS1973

Noise and wake structure measurements in a subsonic tip speed fan

The results of an experimental program are reported which show the effect of blade angle, tip speed, fan pressure ratio, and thrust on noise of a model fan of 0.457m (18 inches) diameter operating at subsonic tip speeds at pressure ratios between 1.06 and 1.15. The fan used in this study had 12 blades, 7 stator vanes, and a spacing between the rotor and stator of 1.85 blade chords. This fan was originally designed for aerodynamic testing and was considered a good performer. It was used in the noise test program as it incorporated features found to reduce noise in an earlier analytical parametric study. For a given pressure ratio the fan was shown to exhibit minimum noise at the blade angle and tip speed near that of maximum aerodynamic efficiency. Also, the noise level and spectrum character of this fan showed excellent correlation with scaled data of a similar larger diameter fan. Results of the program confirm the trends shown in the earlier analytical parametric study which showed that fan noise could be reduced for a given thrust and pressure ratio by increasing fan solidity, improving fan aerodynamic design, and operating the fan at an optimum subsonic tip speed. In addition to noise, the blade wake characteristics at the leading edge of the stator were measured in this program. At root and tip sections some difference between predicted and measured wakes was found. However comparisons between predicted and measured wakes at mid span locations was found to be good.

Magliozzi, B.↗
NASA NTRS1932

Full-Scale Tests of Metal Propellers at High Tip Speeds

This report describes tests of 10 full-scale metal propellers of several thickness ratios at various tip speeds up to 1,350 feet per second. The results indicate no loss of efficiency up to tip speeds of approximately 1,000 feet per second. Above this tip speed the loss is at a rate of about 10 per cent per 100 feet per second increase relative to the efficiency at the lower speeds for propellers of pitch diameter ratios 0.3 to 0.4. Propellers having sections of small thickness ratio can be run at slightly higher speeds than thick ones before beginning to lose efficiency.

Wood, Donald H↗
NASA NTRS1977

Ultra high tip speed (670.6 m/sec) fan stage with composite rotor: Aerodynamic and mechanical design

A highly loaded, single-stage compressor having a tip speed of 670.6 m/sec was designed for the purpose of investigating very high tip speeds and high aerodynamic loadings to obtain high stage pressure ratios at acceptable levels of efficiency. The design pressure ratio is 2.8 at an adiabatic efficiency of 84.4%. Corrected design flow is 83.4 kg/sec; corrected design speed is 15,200 rpm; and rotor inlet tip diameter is 0.853 m. The rotor uses multiple-circular-arc airfoils from 0 to 15% span, precompression airfoils assuming single, strong oblique shocks from 21 to 43% span, and precompression airfoils assuming multiple oblique shocks from 52% span to the tip. Because of the high tip speeds, the rotor blades are designed to be fabricated of composite materials. Two composite materials were investigated: Courtaulds HTS graphite fiber in a Kerimid 601 polyimide matrix and the same fibers in a PMR polyimide matrix. In addition to providing a description of the aerodynamic and mechanical design of the 670.0 m/sec fan, discussion is presented of the results of structural tests of blades fabricated with both types of matrices.

Halle, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Observations from varying the lift and drag inputs to a noise prediction method for supersonic helical tip speed propellers

Previous comparisons between calculated and measured supersonic helical tip speed propeller noise show them to have different trends of peak blade passing tone versus helical tip Mach number. It was postulated that improvements in this comparison could be made first by including the drag force terms in the prediction and then by reducing the blade lift terms at the tip to allow the drag forces to dominate the noise prediction. Propeller hub to tip lift distributions were varied, but they did not yield sufficient change in the predicted lift noise to improve the comparison. This result indicates that some basic changes in the theory may be needed. In addition, the noise predicted by the drag forces did not exhibit the same curve shape as the measured data. So even if the drag force terms were to dominate, the trends with helical tip Mach number for theory and experiment would still not be the same. The effect of the blade shock wave pressure rise was approxmated by increasing the drag coefficient at the blade tip. Predictions using this shock wdave approximation did have a curve shape similar to the measured data. This result indicates that the shock pressure rise probably controls the noise at supersonic tip speed and that the linear prediction method can give the proper noise trend with Mach number.

Dittmar, J. H.↗
NASA NTRS1960

Measurements of the Time-Averaged and Instantaneous Induced Velocities in the Wake of a Helicopter Rotor Hovering at High Tip Speeds

Measurements of the time-averaged induced velocities were obtained for rotor tip speeds as great as 1,100 feet per second (tip Mach number of 0.98) and measurements of the instantaneous induced velocities were obtained for rotor tip speeds as great as 900 feet per second. The results indicate that the small effects on the wake with increasing Mach number are primarily due to the changes in rotor-load distribution resulting from changes in Mach number rather than to compressibility effects on the wake itself. No effect of tip Mach number on the instantaneous velocities was observed. Under conditions for which the blade tip was operated at negative pitch angles, an erratic circulatory flow was observed.

Heyson, Harry H.↗
NASA NTRS2012

The Effect of Rotor Cruise Tip Speed, Engine Technology and Engine/Drive System RPM on the NASA Large Civil Tiltrotor (LCTR2) Size and Performance

A multi-year study was conducted under NASA NNA06BC41C Task Order 10 and NASA NNA09DA56C task orders 2, 4, and 5 to identify the most promising propulsion system concepts that enable rotor cruise tip speeds down to 54% of the hover tip speed for a civil tiltrotor aircraft. Combinations of engine RPM reduction and 2-speed drive systems were evaluated. Three levels of engine and the drive system advanced technology were assessed; 2015, 2025 and 2035. Propulsion and drive system configurations that resulted in minimum vehicle gross weight were identified. Design variables included engine speed reduction, drive system speed reduction, technology, and rotor cruise propulsion efficiency. The NASA Large Civil Tiltrotor, LCTR, aircraft served as the base vehicle concept for this study and was resized for over thirty combinations of operating cruise RPM and technology level, quantifying LCTR2 Gross Weight, size, and mission fuel. Additional studies show design sensitivity to other mission ranges and design airspeeds, with corresponding relative estimated operational cost. The lightest vehicle gross weight solution consistently came from rotor cruise tip speeds between 422 fps and 500 fps. Nearly equivalent results were achieved with operating at reduced engine RPM with a single-speed drive system or with a two-speed drive system and 100% engine RPM. Projected performance for a 2025 engine technology provided improved fuel flow over a wide range of operating speeds relative to the 2015 technology, but increased engine weight nullified the improved fuel flow resulting in increased aircraft gross weights. The 2035 engine technology provided further fuel flow reduction and 25% lower engine weight, and the 2035 drive system technology provided a 12% reduction in drive system weight. In combination, the 2035 technologies reduced aircraft takeoff gross weight by 14% relative to the 2015 technologies.

Robuck, Mark↗
NASA NTRS1974

Acoustic results of supersonic tip speed fan blade modification

A supersonic tip speed single stage fan was modified with the intent of reducing multiple pure tone (MPT) or buzz saw noise. There were three modifications to the blades from the original design. The modifications to the blade resulted in an increase in cascade throat area causing the shock to start at a lower corrected fan speed. The acoustic results without acoustically absorbing liners showed substantial reduction in multiple pure tone levels. However, an increase in the blade passing frequency noise at takeoff fan speed accompanied the MPT reduction. The net result however, was a reduction in the maximum 1000-foot (304.8 m) altitude level flyover PNL. For the case with acoustic treatment in the inlet outer wall, the takeoff noise increased relative to an acoustically treated baseline. This was largely due to the increased blade passing frequency noise which was not effectively reduced by the liner.

Jutras, R. R.↗
NASA NTRS2026

Aerodynamic Performance and Acoustic Impacts of Varying Tip Speeds and Tripping Conditions on Small Rotors in an Anechoic Hover Chamber

Performance and acoustic measurements were taken in a hover chamber for various optimum hovering rotors (OPT2) and a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) rotor. A total of 10 rotors are included in this report, all of which have two blades and a tip radius of 0.1905 m (7.5 in.). For the OPT2, results for three additive manufacturing methods of fabrication are presented: stereolithography(SLA) using Accura Xtreme, SLA using FormLabs 10K resin, and selective laser sintering (SLS) using mineral-filled PA12 nylon material. All but one set of rotors were designed with a trailing edge bluntness that is 3% of the chord length, and one set was designed with a bluntness that is 1% of the chord length. Spanwise boundary layer trips were applied to the SLA, FormLabs and COTS rotors. Performance comparisons between untripped and tripped configurations demonstrate the impact of boundary layer state on rotor efficiency. Acoustic results, including periodic and broadband noise components, are presented. The effects of tripping these rotors near the leading edge are also presented. For some of the rotors, acoustic spectra of tip speed sweeps are presented to show how the frequency content changes with tip speed. Amplitude and frequency scaling methods are used to collapse broadband spectra at various tip speeds towards a unified curve. These findings contribute to the understanding of small rotor aeroacoustics and provide valuable datasets for computational model validation in urban air mobility applications.

eVTOL↗
NASA NTRS1998

Reduced Perceived Noise Low Tip Speed Fans as a Result of Abandoning Cutoff Stator Vane Numbers

As fan tip speeds are reduced, broadband noise is becoming more important in the calculation of perceived noise. Past experience indicates that lower vane number stators with either constant chord or constant solidity may be a way to reduce broadband noise caused by the interaction of the rotor wake turbulence with the stators. A baseline fan and a low blade number fan were investigated to determine if a noise reduction was possible. The low vane number fan showed a 2 PndB and a 1.5 PNLT noise reduction. These reductions show that this is a viable technique for reducing the perceived noise of low tip speed fans.

Dittmar, James↗
NASA NTRS1929

Full Scale Tests on a Thin Metal Propeller at Various Tip Speeds

This report describes an investigation made in order to determine the effect of tip speed on the characteristics of a thin-bladed metal propeller. The propeller was mounted on a VE-7 airplane with a 180-HP E-2 engine, and tested in the 20-foot propeller research tunnel of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. It was found that the effect of tip speed on the propulsive efficiency was negligible within the range of the tests, which was from 600 to 1,000 feet per second (about 0.5 to 0.9 the velocity of sound in air). (author)

Weick, Fred E↗
NASA NTRS2006

Fan Performance From Duct Rake Instrumentation on a 1.294 Pressure Ratio, 725 ft/sec Tip Speed Turbofan Simulator Using Vaned Passage Casing Treatment

A 1.294 pressure ratio, 725 ft/sec tip speed, variable pitch low noise fan was designed and tested in the NASA Glenn 9- by 15-foot Wind Tunnel. The design included a casing treatment that used recirculation to extend the fan stall line and provide an acceptable operating range. Overall aerodynamic experimental results are presented for this low tip speed, low noise fan without casing treatment as well as using several variants of the casing treatment that moved the air extraction and insertion axial locations. Measurements were made to assess effects on performance, operability, and noise. An unusual instability was discovered near the design operating line and is documented in the fan operating range. Measurements were made to compare stall margin improvements as well as measure the performance impact of the casing treatments. Experimental results in the presence of simulated inlet distortion, via screens, are presented for the baseline and recirculation casing treatment configurations. Estimates are made for the quantity of recirculation weight flow based on limited instrumentation in the recirculation system along with discussion of results and conclusions

Fite, E. Brian↗
NASA NTRS1973

High-Tip-Speed, Low-Loading Transonic Fan Stage. Part 1: Aerodynamic and Mechanical Design

A high-tip-speed, low-loading transonic fan stage was designed to deliver an overall pressure ratio of 1.5 with an adiabatic efficiency of 86 percent. The design flow per unit annulus area is 42.0 pounds per square foot. The fan features a hub/tip ratio of 0.46, a tip diameter of 28.74 in. and operates at a design tip speed of 1600 fps. For these design conditions, the rotor blade tip region operates with supersonic inlet and supersonic discharge relative velocities. A sophisticated quasi-three-dimensional characteristic section design procedure was used for the all-supersonic sections and the inlet of the midspan transonic sections. For regions where the relative outlet velocities are supersonic, the blade operates with weak oblique shocks only.

Wright, L. C.↗