Aerospace Engineering Commons^™

New Design Of An Electronic Power System For The Cosmic X-Ray Background Nanosatellite-3, Christian Joel Ortiz-Huertas

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by Christian Joel Ortiz Huertas on April 24, 2019.

Using A Balloon-Launched Unmanned Glider To Validate Real-Time Wrf Modeling, Travis J. Schuyler, S. M. Iman Gohari, Gary Pundsack, Donald Berchoff, Marcelo I. Guzman

Chemistry Faculty Publications

The use of small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) for meteorological measurements has expanded significantly in recent years. SUAS are efficient platforms for collecting data with high resolution in both space and time, providing opportunities for enhanced atmospheric sampling. Furthermore, advances in mesoscale weather research and forecasting (WRF) modeling and graphical processing unit (GPU) computing have enabled high resolution weather modeling. In this manuscript, a balloon-launched unmanned glider, complete with a suite of sensors to measure atmospheric temperature, pressure, and relative humidity, is deployed for validation of real-time weather models. This work demonstrates the usefulness of sUAS for validating and improving …

Double Wall Cooling Of A Full Coverage Effusion Plate With Main Flow Pressure Gradient, Including Internal Impingement Array Cooling, Sneha R. Vanga, David Ritchie, Austin Click, Zhong Ren, Phil Ligrani, Federico Liberatore, Rajeshriben Patel, Ram Srinivasan, Yin-Hsiang Ho

PRC-Affiliated Research

The present study provides new effusion cooling data for both the surfaces of the fullcoverage effusion cooling plate. For the effusion-cooled surface, presented are spatially resolved distributions of surface adiabatic film cooling effectiveness and surface heat transfer coefficients (measured using transient techniques and infrared thermography). For the impingement-cooled surface, presented are spatially resolved distributions of surface Nusselt numbers (measured using steady-state liquid crystal thermography). To produce this cool-side augmentation, impingement jet arrays at different jet Reynolds numbers, from 2720 to 11,100, are employed. Experimental data are given for a sparse effusion hole array, with spanwise and streamwise impingement hole spacing …

Double Wall Cooling Of A Full Coverage Effusion Plate With Main Flow Pressure Gradient, Including Internal Impingement Array Cooling, Sneha R. Vanga, David Ritchie, Austin Click, Zhong Ren, Phil Ligrani, Federico Liberatore, Rajeshriben Patel, Ram Srinivasan, Yin-Hsiang Ho

PRC-Affiliated Research

The present study provides new effusion cooling data for both the surfaces of the fullcoverage effusion cooling plate. For the effusion-cooled surface, presented are spatially resolved distributions of surface adiabatic film cooling effectiveness and surface heat transfer coefficients (measured using transient techniques and infrared thermography). For the impingement-cooled surface, presented are spatially resolved distributions of surface Nusselt numbers (measured using steady-state liquid crystal thermography). To produce this cool-side augmentation, impingement jet arrays at different jet Reynolds numbers, from 2720 to 11,100, are employed. Experimental data are given for a sparse effusion hole array, with spanwise and streamwise impingement hole spacing …

Double Wall Cooling Of A Full Coverage Effusion Plate With Main Flow Pressure Gradient, Including Internal Impingement Array Cooling, Sneha R. Vanga, David Ritchie, Austin Click, Zhong Ren, Phil Ligrani, Federico Liberatore, Rajeshriben Patel, Ram Srinivasan, Yin-Hsiang Ho

PRC-Affiliated Research

The present study provides new effusion cooling data for both the surfaces of the fullcoverage effusion cooling plate. For the effusion-cooled surface, presented are spatially resolved distributions of surface adiabatic film cooling effectiveness and surface heat transfer coefficients (measured using transient techniques and infrared thermography). For the impingement-cooled surface, presented are spatially resolved distributions of surface Nusselt numbers (measured using steady-state liquid crystal thermography). To produce this cool-side augmentation, impingement jet arrays at different jet Reynolds numbers, from 2720 to 11,100, are employed. Experimental data are given for a sparse effusion hole array, with spanwise and streamwise impingement hole spacing …

Mass Accommodation At A High-Velocity Water Liquid-Vapor Interface, J. Nie, A. Chandra, Z. Liang, P. Keblinski

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

We Use Molecular Dynamics to Determine the Mass Accommodation Coefficient (MAC) of Water Vapor Molecules Colliding with a Rapidly Moving Liquid-Vapor Interface. This Interface Mimics Those Present in Collapsing Vapor Bubbles that Are Characterized by Large Interfacial Velocities. We Find that at Room Temperature, the MAC is Generally Close to Unity, and Even with Interfaces Moving at 10 Km/s Velocity, It Has a Large Value of 0.79. using a Simplified Atomistic Fluid Model, We Explore the Consequences of Vapor Molecule Interfacial Collision Rules on Pressure, Temperature, and Density of a Vapor Subjected to an Incoming High-Velocity Liquid-Vapor Interface.

Control Failures And How To Deal With It, Nihad E. Daidzic

Aviation Department Publications

FAA Safety Seminar (GL1591497) held at Minnesota State University, Mankato Wiecking Center Auditorium at 18:00 CST on Thursday, April 18, 2019.

Chaotic Lunar Capture Designs And Operations Of A Cubesat Using A Low Thrust System, Kennedy V. Haught

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by Kennedy V. Haught on April 17, 2019.

A High Magnification Uv Lens For High Temperature Optical Strain Measurements, Robert S. Hansen, Trevor J. Bird, Ren Voie, Katharine Z. Burn, Ryan B. Berke

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Digital Image Correlation (DIC) measures full-field strains by tracking displacements of a specimen using images taken before and after deformation. At high temperatures, materials emit light in the form of blackbody radiation, which can interfere with DIC images. To screen out that light, DIC has been recently adapted by using ultraviolet (UV) range cameras, lenses, and filters. Before now, UV-DIC had been demonstrated at the centimeter scale using commercially available UV lenses and filters. Commercial high-magnification lenses using visible light have also been used for DIC. However, there is currently no commercially available high-magnification lens that will allow images to …

Thermal Adaptation Of A Vacuum Chamber, Jacob Russell

Honors Theses

The process of adapting a preexisting vacuum chamber to perform thermal vacuum testing is a rare process in the testing industry. A closed vacuum system that was designed without thermal capacitance in mind will hinder the development of additional thermal system capabilities and prove difficult from a cost standpoint. Generally, building a thermal vacuum system from scratch will cost on the order of $10,000 to $100,000 depending on the system requirements regarding control and thermal capacitance within the chamber. This project will explore the cost of such an adaptation, attempting to minimize expense, and potentially provide the “Western Aerospace Launch …

Design Of A Thrust Stand For Electric Propulsion, Hannah Watts

Honors Theses

Thrust stands are the industry standard device for measuring the low levels of thrust generated by electric propulsion devices. Western Michigan University’s Aerospace Laboratory for Plasma Experiments is home to several electric propulsion devices and is in the process of obtaining a pulsed plasma thruster in partnership with the Western Aerospace Launch Initiative. The lab currently has no way of measuring the true thrust force generated by these devices. A thrust stand has been designed specific to the micro-Newton thrust range and the constraints inherent to the facilities in which it will operate.

Water Walking As A New Mode Of Free Surface Skipping, Randy Craig Hurd, Jesse Belden, Allan F. Bower, Sean Holekamp, Michael A. Jandron, Tadd T. Truscott

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Deformable elastomeric spheres are evaluated experimentally as they skip multiple times over a lake surface. Some spheres are embedded with small inertial measurement units to measure the acceleration experienced during water surface impact. A model for multiple impact events shows good agreement between measured acceleration, number of skipping events and distanced traveled. The experiment reveals a new mode of skipping, “water walking”, which is observed for relatively soft spheres impacting at low impact angles. The mode occurs when the sphere gains significant angular velocity over the first several impacts, causing the sphere to maintain a deformed, oblong shape. The behavior …

Autonomous Watercraft Simulation And Programming, Nicholas J. Savino

Student Scholar Showcase

Automation of various modes of transportation is thought to make travel more safe and efficient. Over the past several decades, advances to semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicles have led to advanced autopilot systems on planes and boats, and an increasing popularity of self-driving cars. We predicted the motion of an autonomous vehicle using simulations in Python. The simulation models the motion of a small scale watercraft, which can then be built and programmed using an Arduino Microcontroller. We examined different control methods for a simulated rescue craft to reach a target. We also examined the effects of different factors, such as …

Development And Initial Evaluation Of A Reinforced Cue Detection Model To Assess Situation Awareness In Commercial Aircraft Cockpits, Aysen K. Taylor

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Commercial transport aircraft of today vary greatly from early aircraft with regards to how the aircraft are controlled and the feedback provided from the machine to the human operator. Over time, as avionics systems became more automated, pilots had less direct control over their aircraft. Much research exists in the literature about automation issues, and several major accidents over the last twenty years spurred interest about how to maintain the benefits of automation while improving the overall human-machine interaction as the pilot is considered the last line of defense.

An important reason for maintaining or even improving overall pilot situation …

Model Predictive Control Synthesis For The Innovative Control Effector Tailless Fighter Aircraft, Christopher Proctor

Masters Theses

A nonlinear model predictive control law was developed for the Lockheed Martin Innovative Control Effector tailless fighter aircraft to track way points. In general, aircraft are described by nonlinear dynamics that are dependent on the regime of flight. Additionally strict requirements on state and actuator constraints are common to all aircraft. Tailless aircraft are usually overdetermined systems, meaning solutions to control problems are not unique, and the system is non-affine. The proposed nonlinear control law considers those constraints during run-time, and solves the nonlinear control problem for a range of points within different flight regimes. The control law was developed …

Uncover The Power Of Multipath : Detecting Nlos Drones Using Low-Cost Wifi Devices, Ashok Vardhan Raja

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

In recent years, consumer UAV technology has seen considerable advances. Consumer UAVs have become an ideal vector for privacy invasions due to their affordability, size, maneuverability, and their ability to stream live high-quality video. There is considerable proliferation of drones in both civil and military domains. Hence it is critical to detect invading unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones in a timely manner for both security and safeguarding privacy. Currently available solutions like active radar, video or acoustic sensors are very expensive (especially for individuals) and have considerable constraints (e.g., requiring visual line of sight).

Recent research on drone detection …

Geometric Effects Of Thermal Barrier Coating Damage On Turbine Blade Temperatures, Shane Colon

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Thermal barrier coatings (TBC) found on turbine blades are a key element in the performance and reliability of modern gas turbines. During the life of the turbine components, the TBC surface may be damaged due to manufacturing imperfections, handling damage, service spalling, or service impact damage, producing chips in the coating. While a chip in the TBC coating is expected to cause an increase in airfoil temperature, it is unknown to what degree the blade will be affected and what parameters of the chip shape affect this result. The goal of this preliminary study is to identify the major driving …

Non-Linear Bending Analysis Of Functionally Graded Beams With Spring Constraints And Thermal Effects, Swetha Suresh

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Energy Analysis And Orbit Simulation Of Actuating Cubesat Solar Arrays, Justin T. Ehren

Honors Theses

CubeSats are used in space research to explore new technologies and detect data to gain a better understanding of various areas of research and subjects affecting human life. CubeSats rely on a solar array to generate energy from the sun and perform their various functions in space. This research studies the energy capturing potential of various solar array configurations and positioning devices for CubeSats. The location and orientation of a CubeSat is simulated with MATLAB for both geo-synchronous and sunsynchronous orbits. Two degree-of-freedom (DoF) positioning devices are sufficient to continuously adjust the photovoltaic array to face towards the sun. Lower …

Scale Interactions Within A Perturbed Plane Wall Jet, Shibani Bhatt

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

The current work focuses on exploiting this behavior to manipulate wall turbulence by targeting the large-scales of the flow. In wall turbulence the large-scales of the flow interact with the smaller scales in a non-linear manner including through a process of amplitude and frequency modulation. A plane wall jet (PWJ) is chosen as the model flow field for this work as its unique geometry allows for the controlled introduction of large-scale perturbations through acoustic forcing. The corresponding interactions because of forcing are characterized using single hot-wire measurements. The nearwall response of the PWJ over a range of large-scale forcing showed …

An Investigation Of General Criteria For Assessing Space Flight Systems Of Diverse Mission Concept Designs, Cindy L. Daniels

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to investigate the general criteria for assessing the technical implementation risk factors of proposed space science missions at the mission concept stage. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Space Flight Program and Project Management Handbook (NASA, 2012), the mission concept review objectives are “To evaluate the feasibility of the proposed mission concept(s) and its fulfillment of the program's needs and objectives. To determine whether the maturity of the concept and associated planning are sufficient to begin Phase A” (p.33). Experts previously defined two technical risk factors, to assess aspects of the …

A Comprehensive Experimental And Modeling Study On Dissolution In Li-Ion Batteries, Yoon Koo Lee, Jonghyun Park, Wei Lu

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Dissolution is a critical challenge in metal oxide battery materials, which affects battery performance across multiple scales. At the particle level, the loss of active material as a result of dissolution directly results in capacity fade. At the electrode level, the re-deposition of dissolved metal ions onto the cathode increases cell polarization and hinders lithium transport. At the cell level, the dissolved ions further transport to and deposit on the anode, which consumes cycle-able lithium and leads to capacity fade. These processes lead to poor lithium reversibility, diffusivity, and conductivity. In this work, detailed experimental studies from the particle level …

Control Law Synthesis For Lockheed Martin’S Innovative Control Effectors Aircraft Concept, Cameron James Segard

Masters Theses

This thesis documents a conventional and modern flight control system design process carried out on a tailless aircraft Simulink model with innovative control effectors provided by Lockheed Martin. To set scope and design requirements a performance analysis was carried out to categorize the aircraft. Evaluation of open-loop dynamics reveled modal instabilities as well as state and control coupling. Flight condition dependent pole migration mapping reveled large changes in the aircraft’s static stability. Leading to the development of a four channel proportional-integral- derivative (PID) stability and control augmentation system (SCAS) controlling pitch-rate, roll-rate, side-slip angle, and airspeed states. PID gains are …

Algorithm For Geodetic Positioning Based On Angle-Of-Arrival Of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcasts, Richard Allen Gross

Masters Theses

This paper develops a non-precision, three-dimensional, geodetic positioning algorithm for airborne vehicles. The algorithm leverages the proliferation of Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast (ADS-B) equipped aircraft, utilizing them as airborne navigation aids to generate an RF Angle-of-Arrival (AOA) and Angle-of-Elevation (AOE) based geodetic position. The resulting geodetic position can serve as a redundant navigation system for use during locally limited Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) availability, be used to validate on-board satellite navigation systems in an effort to detect local spoofing attempts, and be used to validate ADS-B position reports.

The navigation algorithm is an implementation of an Extended Kalman …

Characterization And Optimization Of A Propeller Test Stand, Colin Bruce Leighton Benjamin

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In recent history, there has been a rapid rise in the use of drones, and they are expanding in popularity each year. The widespread use and future capabilities of these unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will call for increased study and classification of propellers to maximize their performance. As a result, it is necessary to have continuity in the development, maximization, and optimization of propeller test stand’s capability to collect accurate and precise measurements. It is of significant advantage to have the capability of accurately characterizing a propeller based on its thrust and torque. In this study, a propeller test stand …

Design And Manufacture Of An Inertial Cascade Impactor For Industrial Hygiene Purposes, Hector Joel Gortaire

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Inertial cascade impactors are devices commonly used for industrial hygiene and pharmaceutical studies. Their main purpose is to separate particulate matter suspended in aerosols according to their sizes, which can vary from over 10 µm to 0.5 µm. Their versatility and ease of operation make them suitable for on-site sampling; however, designing them requires a careful consideration of the different geometric parameters that characterize them.

In this thesis, a 5-stage inertial cascade impactor was designed, modelled, constructed, and tested. The main design parameter was the volumetric flow rate, 40 l/min, which was provided by a vacuum pump. By continuous iterations, …

Comparison Of Support Methods For Static Aerodynamic Testing And Validation Of A Magnetic Suspension And Balance System, Cameron K. Neill

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Magnetic suspension wind tunnels offer an alternative to traditional physical support methods. They allow for the collection of support interference free data and broader dynamic test capabilities than existing methods. Determination of dynamic aerodynamic characteristics is a crucial portion of the design of new re-entry capsules. A NASA initiative restored the 6-inch Magnetic Suspension and Balance System to support the design of a new MSBS for a supersonic wind tunnel. Before a new MSBS can be constructed, the characteristics of the current MSBS must be examined.

This thesis discusses the calibration and validation of the 6-inch MSBS. After calibration, three …

Continuous Tow Path Generation For Constant And Variable Stiffness Composite Laminates On Single And Double Curved Surfaces, Caleb R. Pupo

Theses and Dissertations

A novel approach for the generation of steered tow paths on curved shell surfaces is presented. The approach is used to translate optimal theoretical analysis expressed from ply to ply as fiber angle distributions for steered laminates into discrete tow paths on planar, single and double curved surfaces. By adapting the multi mesh approach earlier developed by van Tooren and Elham [1–3] to the new tow path generation code. Two meshes are utilized, a coarse mesh which is generated during the optimization and contains the optimal fiber angle distributions, and a denser mesh obtained from tessellating the surface to better …

Design And Fabrication Of Automatic Single Axis Solar Tracker For Solar Panel, Ghazanfar Mehdi, Naveed Ali, Shafquat Hussain, Asad A. Zaidi, Ahmer Hussain Shah, M. Mustafa Azeem

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Sun energy is a considered to be one of most promising sources to address the world energy crises. Photovoltaic cell is one of the prominent sources of energy. The most important factors that affect the efficiency of solar cells are cell temperature, maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and energy conversion efficiency. The optimization of these factors improves solar cells efficiency for more reliable applications. This study associated by means of the designing and manufacturing process of single axis tracker device by using photo voltaic conversion panels. This solar tracker system assures the conversion optimization of electricity from the source of …

High Fidelity Satellite Navigation Receiver Front-End For Advanced Signal Quality Monitoring And Authentication, Andrew D. Braun

Theses and Dissertations

Over the last several years, interest in utilizing foreign satellite timing and navigation (satnav) signals to augment GPS has grown. Doing so is not without risks; foreign satnav signals must be vetted and determined to be trustworthy before use in military applications. Advanced signal quality monitoring methods can help to ensure that only authentic and reliable satnav signals are utilized. To effectively monitor and authenticate signals, the front-end must impress as little distortions upon the received signal as possible. The purpose of this study is to design, fabricate, and test the performance of a high-fidelity satnav receiver front-end for advanced …