Enhancement of thrust reverser cascade performance using aerodynamic and structural integration

This paper focuses on the design of a cascade within a cold stream thrust reverser during the early, conceptual stage of the product development process. A reliable procedure is developed for the exchange of geometric and load data between a two dimensional aerodynamic model and a three dimensional structural model. Aerodynamic and structural simulations are carried out using realistic operating conditions, for three different design configurations with a view to minimising weight for equivalent or improved aerodynamic and structural performance. For normal operational conditions the simulations show that total reverse thrust is unaffected when the performance of the deformed vanes is compared to the un-deformed case. This shows that for the conditions tested, the minimal deformation of the cascade vanes has no significant affect on aerodynamic efficiency and that there is scope for reducing the weight of the cascade. The pressure distribution through a two dimensional thrust reverser section is determined for two additional cascade vane configurations and it is shown that with a small decrease in total reverse thrust, it is possible to reduce weight and eliminate supersonic flow regimes through the nacelle section. By increasing vane sections in high pressure areas and decreasing sections in low pressure areas the structural performance of the cascade vanes in the weight reduced designs, is improved with significantly reduced levels of vane displacement and stress

Generating analysis topology using virtual topology operators

AbstractVirtual topology operations have been utilized to generate an analysis topology definition suitable for downstream mesh generation. Detailed descriptions are provided for virtual topology merge and split operations for all topological entities, where virtual decompositions are robustly linked to the underlying geometry. Current virtual topology technology is extended to allow the virtual partitioning of volume cells. A valid description of the topology, including relative orientations, is maintained which enables downstream interrogations to be performed on the analysis topology description, such as determining if a specific meshing strategy can be applied to the virtual volume cells. As the virtual representation is a true non-manifold description of the sub-divided domain the interfaces between cells are recorded automatically. Therefore, the advantages of non-manifold modelling are exploited within the manifold modelling environment of a major commercial CAD system without any adaptation of the underlying CAD model. A hierarchical virtual structure is maintained where virtual entities are merged or partitioned. This has a major benefit over existing solutions as the virtual dependencies here are stored in an open and accessible manner, providing the analyst with the freedom to create, modify and edit the analysis topology in any preferred sequence

The structural behaviour in fire of a cold-formed steel portal frame having semi-rigid joints

This paper describes a non-linear finite element study into the effects of elevated temperature on a cold-formed steel portal frame having semi-rigid joints. Numerical modelling was carried out using ABAQUS finite element analysis software with shell elements used to capture localised buckling effects. Results for the ambient shell models are compared against previous full-scale tests. Material properties are taken from the literature, in order to predict the behaviour of the frame at elevated temperature. The results of finite element beam models are compared against those of shell models to enable comparison. At elevated temperature, shell models are shown to detect failure much earlier within the fire. Therefore shell models are recommended for such studies, for a conservative approach

Parametric design velocity computation for CAD-based design optimization using adjoint methods

This paper presents an efficient optimization process, where the parameters defining the features in a feature-based CAD model are used as design variables. The process exploits adjoint methods for the computation of gradients, and as such the computational cost is essentially independent of the number of design variables, making it ideal for optimization in large design spaces. The novelty of this paper lies in linking the adjoint surface sensitivity information with geometric sensitivity values, referred to as design velocities, computed for CAD models created in commercial CAD systems (e.g. CATIA V5 or Siemens NX)

A reduced-order model for gradient-based aerodynamic shape optimisation

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.This work presents a reduced order model for gradient based aerodynamic shape optimization. The solution of the fluid Euler equations is converted to reduced Newton iterations by using the Least Squares Petrov-Galerkin projection. The reduced order basis is extracted by Proper Orthogonal Decomposition from snapshots based on the fluid state. The formulation distinguishes itself by obtaining the snapshots for all design parameters by solving a linear system of equations. Similarly, the reduced gradient formulation is derived by projecting the full-order model state onto the subspace spanned by the reduced basis. Auto-differentiation is used to evaluate the reduced Jacobian without forming the full fluid Jacobian explicitly during the reduced Newton iterations. Throughout the optimisation trajectory, the residual of the reduced Newton iterations is used as an indicator to update the snapshots and enrich the reduced order basis. The resulting multi-fidelity optimisation problem is managed by a trust-region algorithm. The ROM is demonstrated for a subsonic inverse design problem and for an aerofoil drag minimization problem in the transonic regime. The results suggest that the proposed algorithm is capable of aerodynamic shape optimization while reducing the number of full-order model queries and time to solution with respect to an adjoint gradient based optimisation framework

Modeling the dynamics of soil erosion and size-selective sediment transport over nonuniform topography in flume-scale experiments

Soil erosion and the associated nutrient fluxes can lead to severe degradation of surface waters. Given that both sediment transport and nutrient sorption are size selective, it is important to predict the particle size distribution (PSD) as well as the total amount of sediment being eroded. In this paper, a finite volume implementation of the Hairsine-Rose soil erosion model is used to simulate flume-scale experiments with detailed observations of soil erosion and sediment transport dynamics. The numerical implementation allows us to account for the effects of soil surface microtopography (measured using close range photogrammetry) on soil erosion. An in-depth discussion of the model parameters and the constraints is presented. The model reproduces the dynamics of sediment concentration and PSD well, although some discrepancies can be observed. The calibrated parameters are also consistent with independent data in the literature and physical reason. Spatial variations in the suspended and deposited sediment and an analysis of model sensitivity highlight the value of collecting distributed data for a more robust validation of the model and to enhance parametric determinacy. The related issues of spatial resolution and scale in erosion prediction are briefly discussed