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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 NTRS2009

Pyroshock Simulation Systems: Are We Correctly Qualifying Flight Hardware for Pyroshock Environments?

There are several methods of shock testing that are commonly used by the aerospace industry to qualify flight hardware to pyroshock environments. In some cases the shock results and in particular the shock response spectra computed from these tests were interpreted in such a way as to satisfy the testing requirements and were often considered successful for flight hardware qualification. However, close scrutiny of these acquired shock data suggest gross violation of the pyroshock qualification requirements. There are several issues, both in terms of the shock generation mechanisms and the shock signature acquisition and analysis that have led to improper qualification of flight hardware. In this paper some factors contributing to the misinterpretation of the shock data are reviewed. First, issues with the hardware fixturing and instrumentation that may lead to incorrect shock testing are discussed. Second, issues facing the shock simulation systems and pyrotechnic testing are reviewed. Finally, issues pertaining to the data acquisition and analysis are briefly discussed.

instrumentation↗
NASA NTRS2002

Analysis of the Magneto-Hydrodynamic (MHD) Energy Bypass Engine for High-Speed Air-Breathing Propulsion

The performance of the MHD energy bypass air-breathing engine for high-speed propulsion is analyzed in this investigation. This engine is a specific type of the general class of inverse cycle engines. In this paper, the general relationship between engine performance (specific impulse and specific thrust) and the overall total pressure ratio through an engine (from inlet plane to exit plane) is first developed and illustrated. Engines with large total pressure decreases, regardless of cause or source, are seen to have exponentially decreasing performance. The ideal inverse cycle engine (of which the MHD engine is a sub-set) is then demonstrated to have a significant total pressure decrease across the engine; this total pressure decrease is cycle-driven, degrades rapidly with energy bypass ratio, and is independent of any irreversibility. The ideal MHD engine (inverse cycle engine with no irreversibility other than that inherent in the MHD work interaction processes) is next examined and is seen to have an additional large total pressure decrease due to MHD-generated irreversibility in the decelerator and the accelerator. This irreversibility mainly occurs in the deceleration process. Both inherent total pressure losses (inverse cycle and MHD irreversibility) result in a significant narrowing of the performance capability of the MHD bypass engine. The fundamental characteristics of MHD flow acceleration and flow deceleration from the standpoint of irreversibility and second-law constraints are next examined in order to clarify issues regarding flow losses and parameter selection in the MM modules. Severe constraints are seen to exist in the decelerator in terms of allowable deceleration Mach numbers and volumetric (length) required for meaningful energy bypass (work interaction). Considerable difficulties are also encountered and discussed due to thermal/work choking phenomena associated with the deceleration process. Lastly, full engine simulations utilizing inlet shock systems, finite-rate chemistry, wall cooling with thermally balanced engine (fuel heat sink), fuel injection and mixing, friction, etc. are shown and discussed for both the MHD engine and the conventional scramjet. The MHD bypass engine has significantly lower performance in all categories across the Mach number range (8 to 12.2). The lower performance is attributed to the combined effects of 1) additional irreversibility and cooling requirements associated with the MHD components and 2) the total pressure decrease associated with the inverse cycle itself.

Riggins, David W.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Parametric study of shock-induced combustion in a hydrogen air system

A numerical parametric study is conducted to simulate shock-induced combustion under various free-stream conditions and varying blunt body diameter. A steady combustion front is established if the free-stream Mach number is above the Chapman-Jouguet speed of the mixture, whereas an unsteady reaction front is established if the free-stream Mach number is below or at the Chapman-Jouguet speed of the mixture. The above two cases have been simulated for Mach 5.11 and Mach 6.46 with a projectile diameter of 15 mm. Mach 5.11, which is an underdriven case, shows an unsteady reaction front, whereas Mach 6.46, which is an overdriven case, shows a steady reaction front. Next for Mach 5. 11 reducing the diameter to 2.5 mm causes the instabilities to disappear, whereas, for Mach 6.46 increasing the diameter of the projectile to 225 mm causes the instabilities to reappear, indicating that Chapman-Jouguet speed is not the only deciding factor for these instabilities to trigger. The other key parameters are the projectile diameter, induction time, activation energy and the heat release. The appearance and disappearance of the instabilities have been explained by the one-dimensional wave interaction model.

Ahuja, J. K.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Multi-shock Shield Performance at 16.5 MJ for Catalogued Debris

While orbital debris of ten centimeters or more are tracked and catalogued, the difficulty of finding and accurately accounting for forces acting on the objects near the ten centimeter threshold results in both uncertainty of their presence and location. These challenges result in difficult decisions for operators balancing potential costly operational approaches with system loss risk. In this paper, numerical simulations and an experiment using the multi‐shock shield system is described for a cylindrical projectile composed of Nylon, aluminum and void that is approximately 8 cm in diameter and 10 cm in length weighing 670 g impacting the multi‐shock shield normal to the surface with approximately 16.5 MJ of kinetic energy. The multi‐shock shield system has been optimized to facilitate the fragmentation, spread and deceleration of the projectile remnants using hydrodynamic simulations of the impact event. The characteristics and function of each of the layers of the multi‐shock system will be discussed along with considerations for deployment and improvement.

Miller, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS1993

A parallel adaptive mesh refinement algorithm

Over recent years, Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) algorithms which dynamically match the local resolution of the computational grid to the numerical solution being sought have emerged as powerful tools for solving problems that contain disparate length and time scales. In particular, several workers have demonstrated the effectiveness of employing an adaptive, block-structured hierarchical grid system for simulations of complex shock wave phenomena. Unfortunately, from the parallel algorithm developer's viewpoint, this class of scheme is quite involved; these schemes cannot be distilled down to a small kernel upon which various parallelizing strategies may be tested. However, because of their block-structured nature such schemes are inherently parallel, so all is not lost. In this paper we describe the method by which Quirk's AMR algorithm has been parallelized. This method is built upon just a few simple message passing routines and so it may be implemented across a broad class of MIMD machines. Moreover, the method of parallelization is such that the original serial code is left virtually intact, and so we are left with just a single product to support. The importance of this fact should not be underestimated given the size and complexity of the original algorithm.

Quirk, James J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Earthquake Testing

During NASA's Apollo program, it was necessary to subject the mammoth Saturn V launch vehicle to extremely forceful vibrations to assure the moonbooster's structural integrity in flight. Marshall Space Flight Center assigned vibration testing to a contractor, the Scientific Services and Systems Group of Wyle Laboratories, Norco, California. Wyle-3S, as the group is known, built a large facility at Huntsville, Alabama, and equipped it with an enormously forceful shock and vibration system to simulate the liftoff stresses the Saturn V would encounter. Saturn V is no longer in service, but Wyle-3S has found spinoff utility for its vibration facility. It is now being used to simulate earthquake effects on various kinds of equipment, principally equipment intended for use in nuclear power generation. Government regulations require that such equipment demonstrate its ability to survive earthquake conditions. In upper left photo, Wyle3S is preparing to conduct an earthquake test on a 25ton diesel generator built by Atlas Polar Company, Ltd., Toronto, Canada, for emergency use in a Canadian nuclear power plant. Being readied for test in the lower left photo is a large circuit breaker to be used by Duke Power Company, Charlotte, North Carolina. Electro-hydraulic and electro-dynamic shakers in and around the pit simulate earthquake forces.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1983

Collisionless electron shocks in electron-beam-plasma systems

One-dimensional Vlasov simulations show that when an electron beam is suddenly injected into a plasma, a fast-moving monotonic shock forms during the early stage of the transient plasma response. In the shock, the ions are nearly immobile. The shock appears to be an electrostatic electron-beam-plasma mode. The shock evolves from an initial positive potential perturbation, which is supported by an ion burst. The steepening of the perturbation into a shock is characterized by an electron-beam-plasma mode.

Singh, N.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Applications of Radiative Heating for Space Exploration

Vehicles entering planetary atmospheres at high speeds (6 - 12 kms) experience intense heating by flows with temperatures of the order 10 000K. The flow around the vehicle experiences significant dissociation and ionization and is characterized by thermal and chemical non-equilibrium near the shock front, relaxing toward equilibrium. Emission from the plasma is intense enough to impart a significant heat flux on the entering spacecraft, making it necessary to predict the magnitude of radiative heating. Shock tubes represent a unique method capable of characterizing these processes in a flight-similar environment. The Electric Arc Shock tube (EAST) facility is one of the only facilities in its class, able to produce hypersonic flows at speeds up to Mach 50. This talk will review the characterization of radiation measured in EAST with simulations by the codes DPLR and NEQAIR, and in particular, focus on the impact these analyses have on recent missions to explore the solar system.

simulations↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The NASA Ames Aerothermodynamics Branch (Code TSA)

The NASA Ames Aerothermodynamics Branch provides NASA with integrated modeling, simulation, and test capabilities in the areas of aerothermodynamics, shock layer radiation, and entry system design. Our core capabilities include CFD simulation for entry vehicles at hypersonic velocities, including arc jet facility flow modeling and characterization; modeling and testing of shock layer kinetics and radiation; development of flow-field diagnostic techniques; and aero- and aerothermal testing via ballistic ranges. This presentation provides a brief technical introduction to the branches work and our capabilities in these areas.

Aerothermodynamics↗
NASA NTRS1991

Physical lumping methods for developing linear reduced models for high speed propulsion systems

In gasdynamic systems, information travels in one direction for supersonic flow and in both directions for subsonic flow. A shock occurs at the transition from supersonic to subsonic flow. Thus, to simulate these systems, any simulation method implemented for the quasi-one-dimensional Euler equations must have the ability to capture the shock. In this paper, a technique combining both backward and central differencing is presented. The equations are subsequently linearized about an operating point and formulated into a linear state space model. After proper implementation of the boundary conditions, the model order is reduced from 123 to less than 10 using the Schur method of balancing. Simulations comparing frequency and step response of the reduced order model and the original system models are presented.

Immel, S. M.↗
NASA NTRS2023

Irregular Proton Injection to High Energies at Interplanetary Shocks

How thermal particles are accelerated to suprathermal energies is an unsolved issue, crucial for many astrophysical systems. We report novel observations of irregular, dispersive enhancements of the suprathermal particle population upstream of a high-Mach-number interplanetary shock. We interpret the observed behavior as irregular "injections" of suprathermal particles resulting from shock front irregularities. Our findings, directly compared to self-consistent simulation results, provide important insights for the study of remote astrophysical systems where shock structuring is often neglected.

Interplanetary particle acceleration↗
NASA NTRS2007

Relativistic Particle-in-Cell Simulation Studies of Prompt and Early Afterglows Observed by GLAST

Nonthermal radiation observed from astrophysical systems containing relativistic jets and shocks, e.g., gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and Galactic microquasar systems usually have power-law emission spectra. Recent PIC simulations using injected relativistic electron-ion (electro-positron) jets show that acceleration occurs within the downstream jet. Shock acceleration is a ubiquitous phenomenon in astrophysical plasmas. Plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, other two-streaming instability, and the Weibel instability) created in the shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields. These magnetic fields contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "'jitter" radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants.

Mizuno, Y.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Relativistic Particle-In-Cell Simulation Studies of Prompt and Early Afterglows from GRBs

Nonthermal radiation observed from astrophysical systems containing relativistic jets and shocks, e.g., gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and Galactic microquasar systems usually have power-law emission spectra. Recent PIC simulations of relativistic electron-ion (electro-positron) jets injected into a stationary medium show that particle acceleration occurs within the downstream jet. In the collisionless relativistic shock particle acceleration is due to plasma waves and their associated instabilities {e.g., the Weibel (filamentation) instability) created in the shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields. These magnetic fields contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The "jitter" radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants.-/

Nishikawa, Ken-Ichi↗
NASA NTRS2008

New Relativistic Particle-In-Cell Simulation Studies of Prompt and Early Afterglows from GRBs

Nonthermal radiation observed from astrophysical systems containing relativistic jets and shocks, e.g., gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and Galactic microquasar systems usually have power-law emission spectra. Recent PIC simulations of relativistic electron-ion (electro-positron) jets injected into a stationary medium show that particle acceleration occurs within the downstream jet. In the collisionless relativistic shock particle acceleration is due to plasma waves and their associated instabilities (e.g., the Buneman instability, other two-streaming instability, and the Weibel (filamentation) instability) created in the shocks are responsible for particle (electron, positron, and ion) acceleration. The simulation results show that the Weibel instability is responsible for generating and amplifying highly nonuniform, small-scale magnetic fields. These magnetic fields contribute to the electron's transverse deflection behind the jet head. The 'jitter' radiation from deflected electrons has different properties than synchrotron radiation which is calculated in a uniform magnetic field. This jitter radiation may be important to understanding the complex time evolution and/or spectral structure in gamma-ray bursts, relativistic jets, and supernova remnants.

Nishikawa, Ken-ichi↗
NASA NTRS2011

A Source-Term Based Boundary Layer Bleed/Effusion Model for Passive Shock Control

A modeling framework for boundary layer effusion has been developed based on the use of source (or sink) terms instead of the usual practice of specifying bleed directly as a boundary condition. This framework allows the surface boundary condition (i.e. isothermal wall, adiabatic wall, slip wall, etc.) to remain unaltered in the presence of bleed. This approach also lends itself to easily permit the addition of empirical models for second order effects that are not easily accounted for by simply defining effective transpiration values. Two effusion models formulated for supersonic flows have been implemented into this framework; the Doerffer/Bohning law and the Slater formulation. These models were applied to unit problems that contain key aspects of the flow physics applicable to bleed systems designed for hypersonic air-breathing propulsion systems. The ability of each model to predict bulk bleed properties was assessed, as well as the response of the boundary layer as it passes through and downstream of a porous bleed system. The model assessment was performed with and without the presence of shock waves. Three-dimensional CFD simulations that included the geometric details of the porous plate bleed systems were also carried out to supplement the experimental data, and provide additional insights into the bleed flow physics. Overall, both bleed formulations fared well for the tests performed in this study. However, the sample of test problems considered in this effort was not large enough to permit a comprehensive validation of the models.

Baurle, Robert A.↗