Development of Background-Oriented Schlieren for NASA Langley Research Center Ground Test Facilities

This paper provides an overview of recent wind tunnel tests performed at the NASA Langley Research Center where the Background-Oriented Schlieren (BOS) technique was used to provide information pertaining to flow-field density disturbances. The facilities in which the BOS technique was applied included the National Transonic Facility (NTF), Transonic Dynamics Tunnel (TDT), 31-Inch Mach 10 Air Tunnel, 15-Inch Mach 6 High-Temperature Air Tunnel, Rotor Test Cell at the 14 by 22 Subsonic Tunnel, and a 13-Inch Low-Speed Tunnel

Reflected near-field blast pressure measurements using high speed video

Background: The design and analysis of protective systems requires a detailed understanding of, and the ability to accurately predict, the distribution of pressure loads acting on an obstacle following an explosive detonation. In particular, there is a pressing need for accurate characterisation of blast loads in the region very close to a detonation, where even small improvised devices can produce serious structural or material damage. Objective: Accurate experimental measurement of these near-field blast events, using intrusive methods, is demanding owing to the high magnitudes (> 100 MPa) and short durations (< 1 ms) of loading. The objective of this article is to develop a non-intrusive method for measuring reflected blast pressure distributions using image analysis. Methods: This article presents results from high speed video analysis of near-field spherical PE4 explosive blasts. The Canny edge detection algorithm is used to track the outer surface of the explosive fireball, with the results used to derive a velocity-radius relationship. Reflected pressure distributions are calculated using this velocity-radius relationship in conjunction with the Rankine-Hugoniot jump conditions. Results: The indirectly measured pressure distributions from high speed video are compared with directly measured pressure distributions and are shown to be in good qualitative agreement with respect to distribution of reflected pressures, and in good quantitative agreement with peak reflected pressures (within 10% of the maximum recorded value). Conclusions: The results indicate that it is possible to accurately measure blast loads in the order of 100s MPa using techniques which do not require sensitive recording equipment to be located close to the source of the explosion

Spared behavior of explosion in closed space

This paper presents the results of visibilitization experiment which is carried out to measure the pressure rise and to observe the wave propagations when the explosion occurs in the model of nuclear fuel cycle facility (NFCF). Numerical simulation is also performed to compare the phenomena in NFCF. NFCF is modeled as the closed space in these experiment and simulations. As a result, it is confirmed that the explosion which occurs in closed space is reflected in the complexity at the walls and interfered mutually with progressing waves. It is observed that the pressure rise repeatedly at the corner in the rooms

Performance evaluation of an overdriven LED for high-speed schlieren imaging

Author Accepted version of article deposited according to Springer Self-Archiving policy http://www.springer.com/gp/open-access/authors-rights/self-archiving-policy/2124 March 11, 2016.A quantitative comparison of an overdriven light-emitting diode (LED) and a high-intensity discharge (HID) lamp as illumination sources for high-speed schlieren imaging is presented. A custom pulser circuit utilizing a new and improved driver circuit was developed to overdrive the LED by a factor of ten while simultaneously reducing pulse widths to sub-microsecond durations. The LED system has been developed as a simple and inexpensive alternative light source to discharge lamps and pulsed laser systems, which are typical for high-speed schlieren imaging. Image quality of a decaying spherical shock wave, produced from the unsteady release of an under-expanded helium jet, is analyzed to assess comparative performance. The effects of framing rate, camera exposure time, and pulse duration on image quality were assessed and compared for the novel LED and an HID. Framing rates of 10,000 and 50,000 fps and exposure times of 1 and 10 µs were tested. Image quality was assessed qualitatively through side-by-side comparisons of fluid dynamic features such as the resolution of shock waves, compression waves, and shear layers. Quantitative analysis was performed through the comparison of the signal-to-noise ratio at the various conditions. LED performance was found to be superior when imaging fast events and inferior when imaging slower events. Results and potential system improvements indicate that the LED system is ideal for low-cost, high-speed flow imaging.Ye