Computational fluid dynamics research at the United Technologies Research Center requiring supercomputers

An overview of research activities at the United Technologies Research Center (UTRC) in the area of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is presented. The requirement and use of various levels of computers, including supercomputers, for the CFD activities is described. Examples of CFD directed toward applications to helicopters, turbomachinery, heat exchangers, and the National Aerospace Plane are included. Helicopter rotor codes for the prediction of rotor and fuselage flow fields and airloads were developed with emphasis on rotor wake modeling. Airflow and airload predictions and comparisons with experimental data are presented. Examples are presented of recent parabolized Navier-Stokes and full Navier-Stokes solutions for hypersonic shock-wave/boundary layer interaction, and hydrogen/air supersonic combustion. In addition, other examples of CFD efforts in turbomachinery Navier-Stokes methodology and separated flow modeling are presented. A brief discussion of the 3-tier scientific computing environment is also presented, in which the researcher has access to workstations, mid-size computers, and supercomputers

Dynamic Control of Mobile Multirobot Systems: The Cluster Space Formulation

The formation control technique called cluster space control promotes simplified specification and monitoring of the motion of mobile multirobot systems of limited size. Previous paper has established the conceptual foundation of this approach and has experimentally verified and validated its use for various systems implementing kinematic controllers. In this paper, we briefly review the definition of the cluster space framework and introduce a new cluster space dynamic model. This model represents the dynamics of the formation as a whole as a function of the dynamics of the member robots. Given this model, generalized cluster space forces can be applied to the formation, and a Jacobian transpose controller can be implemented to transform cluster space compensation forces into robot-level forces to be applied to the robots in the formation. Then, a nonlinear model-based partition controller is proposed. This controller cancels out the formation dynamics and effectively decouples the cluster space variables. Computer simulations and experimental results using three autonomous surface vessels and four land rovers show the effectiveness of the approach. Finally, sensitivity to errors in the estimation of cluster model parameters is analyzed.Fil: Mas, Ignacio Agustin. Instituto Tecnológico de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Kitts, Christopher. Santa Clara University; Estados Unido

A comprehensive literature classification of simulation optimisation methods

Simulation Optimization (SO) provides a structured approach to the system design and configuration when analytical expressions for input/output relationships are unavailable. Several excellent surveys have been written on this topic. Each survey concentrates on only few classification criteria. This paper presents a literature survey with all classification criteria on techniques for SO according to the problem of characteristics such as shape of the response surface (global as compared to local optimization), objective functions (single or multiple objectives) and parameter spaces (discrete or continuous parameters). The survey focuses specifically on the SO problem that involves single per-formance measureSimulation Optimization, classification methods, literature survey

Stochastic Simulation of Mudcrack Damage Formation in an Environmental Barrier Coating

The FEAMAC/CARES program, which integrates finite element analysis (FEA) with the MAC/GMC (Micromechanics Analysis Code with Generalized Method of Cells) and the CARES/Life (Ceramics Analysis and Reliability Evaluation of Structures / Life Prediction) programs, was used to simulate the formation of mudcracks during the cooling of a multilayered environmental barrier coating (EBC) deposited on a silicon carbide substrate. FEAMAC/CARES combines the MAC/GMC multiscale micromechanics analysis capability (primarily developed for composite materials) with the CARES/Life probabilistic multiaxial failure criteria (developed for brittle ceramic materials) and Abaqus (Dassault Systmes) FEA. In this report, elastic modulus reduction of randomly damaged finite elements was used to represent discrete cracking events. The use of many small-sized low-aspect-ratio elements enabled the formation of crack boundaries, leading to development of mudcrack-patterned damage. Finite element models of a disk-shaped three-dimensional specimen and a twodimensional model of a through-the-thickness cross section subjected to progressive cooling from 1,300 C to an ambient temperature of 23 C were made. Mudcrack damage in the coating resulted from the buildup of residual tensile stresses between the individual material constituents because of thermal expansion mismatches between coating layers and the substrate. A two-parameter Weibull distribution characterized the coating layer stochastic strength response and allowed the effect of the Weibull modulus on the formation of damage and crack segmentation lengths to be studied. The spontaneous initiation of cracking and crack coalescence resulted in progressively smaller mudcrack cells as cooling progressed, consistent with a fractal-behaved fracture pattern. Other failure modes such as delamination, and possibly spallation, could also be reproduced. The physical basis assumed and the heuristic approach employed, which involves a simple stochastic cellular automaton methodology to approximate the crack growth process, are described. The results ultimately show that a selforganizing mudcrack formation can derive from a Weibull distribution that is used to describe the stochastic strength response of the bulk brittle ceramic material layers of an EBC