Study on pressure wave propagation in two-phase flow in liquid oxygen feed pipe between pumps

A study on the character of pressure wave propagation was proposed for the gas liquid oxygen two-phase flow in the pipe between pumps.According to the practical working conditions,the homogenous model based on the compressibility theory regarding a single bubble in an infinite liquid,and Redlich-Kwong gas equation was derived a model for the low temperature and high pressure case,especially considering the change of the ratio of density of gas to one of liquid.The numerical tests were conducted.The results not only show the agreement between numerical simulation for this model and experiment at the normal temperature and pressure is good,but also show that the modifications of the model for the low temperature and high pressure condition are necessary.The study is of reference to further study of oscillation restrain and relative pipe tests.      

Estimation method for random sonic fatigue life of thin-walled structure of a combustor liner based on stress probability distribution

As to the sonic fatigue problem of an aero-engine combustor liner structure under the random acoustic loadings,an effective method for predicting the fatigue life of a structure under random loadings was studied.Firstly,the probability distribution of Von Mises stress of thin-walled structure under random loadings was studied,analysis suggested that probability density function of Von Mises stress process accord approximately with two-parameter Weibull distribution.The formula for calculating Weibull parameters were given.Based on the Miner linear theory,the method for predicting the random sonic fatigue life based on the stress probability density was developed,and the model for fatigue life prediction was constructed.As an example,an aero-engine combustor liner structure was considered.The power spectrum density(PSD) of the vibrational stress response was calculated by using the coupled FEM/BEM(finite element method/boundary element method) model,the fatigue life was estimated by using the constructed model.And considering the influence of the wide frequency band,the calculated results were modified.Comparetive analysis shows that the estimated results of sonic fatigue of the combustor liner structure by using Weibull distribution of Von Mises stress are more conservative than using Dirlik distribution to some extend.The results show that the methods presented in this paper are practical for the random fatigue life analysis of the aeronautical thin-walled structures.     

Multi-parameter decoupling and slope tracking control strategy of a large-scale high altitude environment simulation test cabin

A large-scale high altitude environment simulation test cabin was developed to accurately control temperatures and pressures encountered at high altitudes. The system was developed to provide slope-tracking dynamic control of the temperature–pressure two-parameter and overcome the control difficulties inherent to a large inertia lag link with a complex control system which is composed of turbine refrigeration device, vacuum device and liquid nitrogen cooling device. The system includes multi-parameter decoupling of the cabin itself to avoid equipment damage of air refrigeration turbine caused by improper operation. Based on analysis of the dynamic characteristics and modeling for variations in temperature, pressure and rotation speed, an intelligent controller was implemented that includes decoupling and fuzzy arithmetic combined with an expert PID controller to control test parameters by decoupling and slope tracking control strategy. The control system employed centralized management in an open industrial ethernet architecture with an industrial computer at the core. The simulation and field debugging and running results show that this method can solve the problems of a poor anti-interference performance typical for a conventional PID and overshooting that can readily damage equipment. The steady-state characteristics meet the system requirements.     

Service life prediction of AP/Al/HTPB solid rocket propellant with consideration of softening aging behavior

The aging behavior of softening composite solid propellant was investigated by measuring its mechanical and ballistic prosperities during prolonged storage at elevated and room temperatures. Accelerated aging was conducted at 65 °C for 231 days while the normal aging was performed at 25 ± 3 °C and relative humidity less than 50% for 8 years. The mechanical properties were obtained from uniaxial tensile tests for the aged propellant specimens while the ballistic properties were determined from static firing tests of subscale motors aged for 112 days at 65 °C. The mechanical results show that the maximum tensile strength and Young's modulus initially increase and subsequently decrease with increasing aging time, while the maximum tensile strain generally increases with increasing aging time. The ballistic properties like burning rate show a small change which cannot affect the ballistic performance. The experimental results show that the changes in the mechanical properties are significant during the aging period, but the burning rate does not undergo significant changes. From this study, it is observed that the propellant ages through a combination of reactions like post-cure, oxidative cross-linking, chain scission, and hydrolysis. The chain scission and the hydrolysis effect are the most significant process, which makes the propellant soft and extendible. The observed aging mechanism has been modeled using an exponential function with two terms which can describe the complex behavior of the aging. By applying Arrhenius equation,the activation energy values were obtained based on the propellant mechanical properties. The shelf life of this propellant formulation at 25 °C is predicted to be 13 years using the modulus as failure criteria and control parameter.     

Effect of a transverse plasma jet on a shock wave induced by a ramp

We conducted experiments in a wind tunnel with Mach number 2 to explore the evolution of a transverse plasma jet and its modification effect on a shock wave induced by a ramp with an angle of 24°. The transverse plasma jet was created by arc discharge in a small cylindrical cavity with a 2 mm diameter orifice. Three group tests with different actuator arrangements in the spanwise or streamwise direction upstream from the ramp were respectively studied to compare their disturbances to the shock wave. As shown by a time-resolved schlieren system, an unsteady motion of the shock wave by actuation was found: the shock wave was significantly modified by the plasma jet with an upstream motion and a reduced angle. Compared to spanwise actuation, a more intensive impact was obtained with two or three streamwise actuators working together. From shock wave structures, the control effect of the plasma jet on the shock motion based on a thermal effect, a potential cause of shock modification, was discussed. Furthermore, we performed a numerical simulation by using the Improved Delayed Detached Eddy Simulation(IDDES) method to simulate the evolution of the transverse plasma jet plume produced by two streamwise actuators. The results show that flow structures are similar to those identified in schlieren images. Two streamwise vortices were recognized, which indicates that the higher jet plume is the result of the overlap of two streamwise jets.     

Analysis of blade vibration response induced by rotating stall in axial compressor

An experimental and numerical study was conducted to investigate the forced response of blade vibration induced by rotating stall in a low speed axial compressor. Measurements have been made of the transient stalling process in a low speed axial compressor stage. The CFD study was performed using solution of 3-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations, coupled with structure finite element models for the blades to identify modal shapes and structural deformations simultaneously. Interactions between fluid and structure were managed in a coupled manner, based on the interface information exchange until convergence in each time step. Based on the rotating stall measurement data obtained from a low speed axial compressor, the blade aeroelastic response induced by the rotating stall flow field was analyzed to study the vibration characteristics and the correlation between the phenomena. With this approach,good agreement between the numerical results and the experimental data was observed. The flow phenomena were well captured, and the results indicate that the rotating field stall plays a significant role in the blade vibration and stress affected by the flow excitation.      

A numerical model for bird strike on sidewall structure of an aircraft nose

In order to examine the potential of using the coupled smooth particles hydrodynamic(SPH) and finite element(FE) method to predict the dynamic responses of aircraft structures in bird strike events, bird-strike tests on the sidewall structure of an aircraft nose are carried out and numerically simulated. The bird is modeled with SPH and described by the Murnaghan equation of state, while the structure is modeled with finite elements. A coupled SPH–FE method is developed to simulate the bird-strike tests and a numerical model is established using a commercial software PAM-CRASH. The bird model shows no signs of instability and correctly modeled the break-up of the bird into particles. Finally the dynamic response such as strains in the skin is simulated and compared with test results, and the simulated deformation and fracture process of the sidewall structure is compared with images recorded by a high speed camera. Good agreement between the simulation results and test data indicates that the coupled SPH–FE method can provide a very powerful tool in predicting the dynamic responses of aircraft structures in events of bird strike.     

Design and implementation of rigid-flexible coupling for a half-flexible single jack nozzle

The aerodynamic design of a rigid-flexible coupling profile is the decisive factor for the flow-field quality of a supersonic free jet wind tunnel nozzle, and its mechanic dynamic features are the key for engineering implementation of continuous Mach number regulations. To fulfill the requirements of a free jet inlet/engine compatibility test within a wide simulation envelop, both uni-form flow-fields of continuous acceleration and deceleration are necessary. In this paper, the aero-dynamic design methods of an expansion wall and machinery implementation plan for the half-flexible single jack nozzle were researched. The profile control in nozzle flexible plate design was studied with a rigid-flexible coupling method. Design and calculations were performed with the help of numerical simulation. The technique of axial free stretching of the flexible plate was used to improve the matching performance between the designed elasticity profile and the theoretical one, and the rigid-flexible coupling structure was calibrated by wind tunnel tests. Results indicate that the flexible plate aerodynamic design method used here is effective and feasible. Via rigid-flexible coupling design, the flexible plate agrees with the rigid body very well, and continuous Mach number changes can be achieved during the tests. The nozzle’s exit flow-field uniformity meets the requirements of China Military Standard (GJB).     

Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of In Situ TiB_2-7055 Composites

In order to fabricate a kind of high strength particulate reinforced aluminum-matrix composites, the high strength aluminum alloy 7055 was selected as a matrix. Composites reinforced with varying amounts of TiB2 particles were synthesized using the in situ method, and their mechanical properties and microstructure were analyzed. It is found that the in situ TiB2 particles sized from 50 to 400 nm uniformly disperse in the matrix. With the weight fraction of TiB2 particles increasing, the elastic modulus as well as the yield strength and the ultimate tensile strength increase, while the ductility decrease. The improvement of strength could be attributed to good bonding between TiB2 and the matrix, and also the TiB2 particles act as a barrier to dislocation.     

Effect of Processing and Composition on the Structure and Properties of P/M EP741NP Type Alloys

A study was carried out on the effects of processing and composition on the structure and properties of P/M EP741NP type alloys. The objectives of this study were to understand the role of Hf in a P/M superalloy containing high niobium used in aircraft engines and to determine the effects of extrusion and forging the powders as contrasted to HIPing (hot isostatic pressing) only. Two alloys of the P/M EP741NP composition were atomized: one alloy contained 0.26%Hf and the other was Hf free. After the as-atomized powders from both alloys were characterized, the powders were extruded into billets, forged and heat treated. After each process, the microstructures were characterized by SEM and the phases were extracted and identified by X-ray diffraction. The presence of Hf in the residues was probed by EDS (energy dispersive spectroscopy). The alloys were given the published Russian heat treatment as well as a more conventional heat treatment more typical of western powder alloys. Tensile, creep and stress rupture mechanical property tests were run. Results of the structural behavior of the alloys after each processing step will be presented and discussed. The role of the Hf on the mechanical proper- ties will be discussed.     

Numerical study of transonic separation flow using an anisotropic turbulence model

A transonic turbulent separation flow in a converging-diverging transonic diffuser was studied, when there existed a separation bubble on the top wall of the diffuser triggered by strong shock-wave-boundary-layer-interaction (SWBLI). To capture the essential behavior of this complex flow, the current study utilized an anisotropic turbulence model developed on the basis of a statistical partial average scheme. The first order moment of turbulent fluctuations, retained by a novel average scheme, and the turbulent length scale, can be determined from the momentum equations and mechanical energy equation of the fluctuation flow, respectively. The two physical quantities were readily used to construct the nonlinear anisotropic eddy viscosity tensor and to significantly improve the computational results. Comparisons between the computational results and experimental data were carried out for velocity profiles, pressure distribution, skin friction coefficient, Reynolds stress as well as streamline vectors distribution. Without using any empirical coefficients and wall functions, the numerical results were in good agreement with the available experimental data, further confirming that the nonlinear anisotropic eddy viscosity tensor is the decisive factor for the success of the computational results.     

Drop test and crash simulation of a civil airplane fuselage section

Crashworthiness of a civil airplane fuselage section was studied in this paper. Firstly, the failure criterion of a rivet was studied by test, showing that the ultimate tension and shear failure loads were obviously affected by the loading speed. The relations between the loading speed and the average ultimate shear, tension loads were expressed by two logarithmic functions. Then, a vertical drop test of a civil airplane fuselage section was conducted with an actual impact velocity of6.85 m/s, meanwhile the deformation of cabin frame and the accelerations at typical locations were measured. The finite element model of a main fuselage structure was developed and validated by modal test, and the error between the calculated frequencies and the test ones of the first four modes were less than 5%. Numerical simulation of the drop test was performed by using the LS-DYNA code and the simulation results show a good agreement with that of drop test. Deforming mode of the analysis was the same as the drop test; the maximum average rigid acceleration in test was 8.81 g while the calculated one was 9.17 g, with an error of 4.1%; average maximum test deformation at four points on the front cabin floor was 420 mm, while the calculated one was 406 mm, with an error of 3.2%; the peak value of the calculated acceleration at a typical location was 14.72 g, which is lower than the test result by 5.46%; the calculated rebound velocity result was greater than the test result 17.8% and energy absorption duration was longer than the test result by 5.73%.     

Experimental study of flow field distribution over a generic cranked double delta wing

The flow fields over a generic cranked double delta wing were investigated. Pressure and velocity distributions were obtained using a Pitot tube and a hot wire anemometer. Two different leading edge shapes, namely ‘‘sharp" and ‘‘round", were applied to the wing. The wing had two sweep angles of 55° and 30°. The experiments were conducted in a closed circuit wind tunnel at velocity 20 m/s and angles of attack of 5°–20° with the step of 5°. The Reynolds number of the model was about 2 ×10~5 according to the root chord. A dual vortex structure was formed above the wing surface. A pressure drop occurred at the vortex core and the root mean square of the measured velocity increased at the core of the vortices, reflecting the instability of the flow in that region. The magnitude of power spectral density increased strongly in spanwise direction and had the maximum value at the vortex core. By increasing the angle of attack, the pressure drop increased and the vortices became wider; the vortices moved inboard along the wing, and away from the surface; the flow separation was initiated from the outer portion of the wing and developed to its inner part. The vortices of the wing of the sharp leading edge were stronger than those of the round one.     

Impact of aperture on dynamic response of sandwich plates with aluminium face-sheets and PMI core based on an alternative finite element formulation and experiments

Apertures generally exist in the sandwich structures attributing to mechanical connection and lightweight, which might induce failure of such structures. Thus, it is required to realize the impact of aperture on mechanical behaviors of sandwich structures. If transverse shear deformations are unable to be described accurately, the reasonable prediction of dynamic behaviors of the form-core sandwich plates with apertures will meet severe challenges due to a large difference of transverse shear mo...     

Lightweight structure of a phase-change thermal controller based on lattice cells manufactured by SLM

Thermal controllers equipped with phase-change materials are widely used for maintaining the moderate temperatures of various electric devices used in spacecraft. Yet, the structures of amounts of thermal controllers add up to such a large value that restricts the employment of scientific devices due to the limit of rocket capacity. A lightweight structure of phase-change thermal controllers has been one of the main focuses of spacecraft design engineering. In this work, we design a lightweight phase-change thermal controller structure based on lattice cells. The structure is manufactured entirely with AlSi10 Mg by direct metal laser melting. The dimensions of the structure are 230 mm × 170 mm × 15 mm, and the mass is 190 g, which is 60% lighter than most traditional structures(500–600 g) with the same dimensions. The 3 D-printed structure can reduce the risk of leakage at soldering manufacture by a welding process. Whether the strength of the designed structure is sufficient is determined through mechanical analysis and experiments. Thermal test results show that the thermal capacity of the lattice-based thermal controller is increased by50% compared to that of traditional controllers with the same volume.     

Electrochemical machining of a convex strips structure on a revolving part by using site directed power interruption

Revolving parts with complex surface structures are widely used in machinery and mechanical equipment. The ECM process provides its adequacy to cut hard materials with different shapes, and its applications are widely increased, due to its outstanding advantages. In this paper, a new method for machining a convex strips structure on a cylinder by using site directed power interruption(SDPI) in the ECM process is presented. A variable correction value of the power-off time was defined and optimized to obtain the ideal interval for better machining accuracy and stability.The electric field distribution and the simulated convex profiles show that the stray current density can be reduced effectively by using the proposed method. The correction value has an important influence on the machining accuracy. A suitable correction value in the range of 0.6–1.2 s can effectively improve the machining accuracy of the convex strips structure. Experiments were also conducted to verify the proposed method. Results have confirmed that the stray corrosion on the convex strips surface is significantly reduced and the machining accuracy of convex strips structure is remarkably improved by using the proposed method with a suitable correction value in the ECM process. Finally, a convex strip with a height of 2 mm on a thin-wall revolving part was also produced successfully using a correction value of 0.9.     

Effect of an end plate on surface pressure distributions of two swept wings

A series of wind tunnel tests was conducted to examine how an end plate affects the pressure distributions of two wings with leading edge(LE) sweep angles of 23° and 40°. All the experiments were carried out at a midchord Reynolds number of 8×10~5, covering an angle of attack(AOA) range from -2° to 14°. Static pressure distribution measurements were acquired over the upper surfaces of the wings along three chordwise rows and one spanwise direction at the wing quarter-chord line. The results of the tests confirm that at a particular AOA, increasing the sweep angle causes a noticeable decrease in the upper-surface suction pressure. Furthermore, as the sweep angle increases, the development of a laminar separation bubble near the LEs of the wings takes place at higher AOAs. On the other hand, spanwise pressure measurements show that increasing the wing sweep angle results in forming a stronger vortex on the quarter-chord line which has lower sensitivity to AOA variation and remains substantially attached to the wing surface for higher AOAs than that can be achieved in the case of a lower sweep angle. In addition, data obtained indicate that installing an end plate further reinforces the spanwise flow over the wing surface, thus affecting the pressure distribution.     

Nonlinear flutter wind tunnel test and numerical analysis of folding fins with freeplay nonlinearities

The flutter characteristics of folding control fins with freeplay are investigated by numerical simulation and flutter wind tunnel tests. Based on the characteristics of the structures, fins with different freeplay angles are designed. For a 0° angle of attack, wind tunnel tests of these fins are conducted, and vibration is observed by accelerometers and a high-speed camera. By the expansion of the connected relationships, the governing equations of fit for the nonlinear aeroelastic analysis are established by the free-interface component mode synthesis method. Based on the results of the wind tunnel tests, the flutter characteristics of fins with different freeplay angles are analyzed. The results show that the vibration divergent speed is increased, and the divergent speed is higher than the flutter speed of the nominal linear system. The vibration divergent speed is increased along with an increase in the freeplay angle. The developed free-interface component mode synthesis method could be used to establish governing equations and to analyze the characteristics of nonlinear aeroelastic systems. The results of the numerical simulations and the wind tunnel tests indicate the same trends and critical velocities.     

Simulation on effect of throat contraction ratio and strake stagger angle on flow field and aerodynamic performance of scrampressor

The design methods of typical supersonic aircraft intakes and shock wave compression technology have been applied to ram-rotor, an attractive compression system. A ram-rotor is of a typical structure including the compression ramp, the throat and the subsonic diffuser; a scrampressor is similar to ram-rotor, the only difference is that scrampressor has no subsonic diffuser. The work was the continuation of the preparatory work. In order to further study the effect of throat contraction ratio and strake stagger angle on the flow field and performance of a scrampressor, the flow field of a scrampressor with a three-dimensional flow path was numerically simulated with different throat contraction ratios and strake stagger angles. Simulated results indicated that the optional aerodynamic performance of a scrampressor could be achieved with an adiabatic efficiency of 0.8413 a total pressure recovery coefficient of 0.8446, a total pressure ratio of 7.14 and a static pressure ratio of 5.17 for a throat contraction ratio of 0.6 and a strake stagger angle of 12°. It was therefore concluded that an appropriate decrease in throat contraction ratio and an increase in strake stagger angle could help the comprehensive improvement of a scrampressor in performance.      

Preparation and Properties of Organically Modified Sepiolite/High-performance Epoxy Nanocomposites

Fibrous organic sepiolites (OSEP) and novel epoxy/OSEP nanocomposites were prepared, and different methods were investigated to produce an intercalated/exfoliated structure of OSEP. Experimental results show that the modifier molecules can be easily adsorbed by the sepiolite, but the layer space (d001) of the sepiolite, linked by means of covalent bond, remains unchanged. A proper method to solve this problem appears to exert large shearing force on the original sepiolite followed by its organic modification (OSEP2). The morphol-ogy observation shows that there are formed an even dispersion of nano-sized OSEP2 fibers in epoxy resin and a structure intercalated by epoxy molecules, which lead to significantly improved mechanical properties. Impact strength of the epoxy/OSEP2 nanocomposite increases from 32.1 kJ/m2 to 44.4 kJ/m2, 38.3% higher than that of pristine matrix with 3 wt% OSEP2 content. It is also noted that the flexural strength of the OSEP/epoxy composites has risen by about 3% higher than that of the pure epoxy resin.