Thrust stand for vertically oriented electric propulsion performance evaluation

A variation of a hanging pendulum thrust stand capable of measuring the performance of an electric thruster operating in the vertical orientation is presented. The vertical orientation of the thruster dictates that the thruster must be horizontally offset from the pendulum pivot arm, necessitating the use of a counterweight system to provide a neutrally stable system. Motion of the pendulum arm is transferred through a balance mechanism to a secondary arm on which deflection is measured. A noncontact light-based transducer is used to measure displacement of the secondary beam. The members experience very little friction, rotating on twisting torsional pivots with oscillatory motion attenuated by a passive, eddy-current damper. Displacement is calibrated using an in situ thrust calibration system. Thermal management and self-leveling systems are incorporated to mitigate thermal and mechanical drifts. Gravitational force and torsional spring constants associated with flexure pivots provide restoring moments. An analysis of the design indicates that the thrust measurement range spans roughly four decades, with the stand capable of measuring thrust up to 12 N for a 200 kg thruster and up to approximately 800 mN for a 10 kg thruster. Data obtained from calibration tests performed using a 26.8 lbm simulated thruster indicated a resolution of 1 mN on 100 mN level thrusts, while those tests conducted on a 200 lbm thruster yielded a resolution of roughly 2.5 mN at thrust levels of 0.5 N and greater.     

Non-contact thrust stand calibration method for repetitively pulsed electric thrusters

A thrust stand calibration technique for use in testing repetitively pulsed electric thrusters for in-space propulsion has been developed and tested using a modified hanging pendulum thrust stand. In the implementation of this technique, current pulses are applied to a solenoid to produce a pulsed magnetic field that acts against a permanent magnet mounted to the thrust stand pendulum arm. The force on the magnet is applied in this non-contact manner, with the entire pulsed force transferred to the pendulum arm through a piezoelectric force transducer to provide a time-accurate force measurement. Modeling of the pendulum arm dynamics reveals that after an initial transient in thrust stand motion the quasi-steady average deflection of the thrust stand arm away from the unforced or "zero" position can be related to the average applied force through a simple linear Hooke's law relationship. Modeling demonstrates that this technique is universally applicable except when the pulsing period is increased to the point where it approaches the period of natural thrust stand motion. Calibration data were obtained using a modified hanging pendulum thrust stand previously used for steady-state thrust measurements. Data were obtained for varying impulse bit at constant pulse frequency and for varying pulse frequency. The two data sets exhibit excellent quantitative agreement with each other. The overall error on the linear regression fit used to determine the calibration coefficient was roughly 1%.     

Torsional thrust balance measurement system development for testing reaction control thrusters

The paper describes the design, development, and testing of a torsional-type thrust stand to evaluate the performance of <40 N class cryogenic propellant reaction control thrusters. New thrust measurement techniques for cryogenic propellant fed reaction control systems at this thrust class are needed as current methods are deficient in providing reliable test data. The torsional thrust stand primarily consists of a balanced moment arm rotating around a set of frictionless pivots. The displacement of the moment arm due to applied thrust was tracked using a laser displacement sensor. A post-processing technique was developed to determine thrust values from displacement data. The measurement capability of the thrust measurement system is exemplified herein through the test firing a LOX/Methane thruster at steady-state and pulsing conditions. Effects of thruster mass and feed system stiffness on thrust-stand measurement characteristics were also assessed. The measurement system provided repeatable thrust data at steady-state and pulsing operating conditions.     

Thrust stand for low-thrust liquid pulsed rocket engines

A thrust stand is developed for measuring the pulsed thrust generated by low-thrust liquid pulsed rocket engines. It mainly consists of a thrust dynamometer, a base frame, a connecting frame, and a data acquisition and processing system. The thrust dynamometer assembled with shear mode piezoelectric quartz sensors is developed as the core component of the thrust stand. It adopts integral shell structure. The sensors are inserted into unique double-elastic-half-ring grooves with an interference fit. The thrust is transferred to the sensors by means of static friction forces of fitting surfaces. The sensors could produce an amount of charges which are proportional to the thrust to be measured. The thrust stand is calibrated both statically and dynamically. The in situ static calibration is performed using a standard force sensor. The dynamic calibration is carried out using pendulum-typed steel ball impact technique. Typical thrust pulse is simulated by a trapezoidal impulse force. The results show that the thrust stand has a sensitivity of 25.832 mV/N, a linearity error of 0.24% FSO, and a repeatability error of 0.23% FSO. The first natural frequency of the thrust stand is 1245 Hz. The thrust stand can accurately measure thrust waveform of each firing, which is used for fine control of on-orbit vehicles in the thrust range of 5-20 N with pulse frequency of 50 Hz.     

Pulsed thrust measurements using electromagnetic calibration techniques

A thrust stand for accurately measuring impulse bits, which ranged from 10-1000 μN?s using a noncontact electromagnetic calibration technique is described. In particular, a permanent magnet structure was designed to produce a uniform magnetic field, and a multiturn coil was made to produce a calibration force less than 10 mN. The electromagnetic calibration force for pulsed thrust measurements was linear to the coil current and changed less than 2.5% when the distance between the coil and magnet changed 6 mm. A pulsed plasma thruster was first tested on the thrust stand, and afterward five single impulse bits were measured to give a 310 μN?s average impulse bit. Uncertainty of the measured impulse bit was analyzed to evaluate the quality of the measurement and was found to be 10 μN?s with 95% credibility.     

An apparatus for simultaneous measurement of electrical conductivity and thermopower of thin films in the temperature range of 300-750 K

An automated apparatus capable of measuring the electrical conductivity and thermopower of thin films over a temperature range of 300-750 K is reported. A standard dc resistance measurement in van der Pauw geometry was used to evaluate the electrical conductivity, and the thermopower was measured using the differential method. The design of the instrument, the methods used for calibration, and the measurement procedure are described in detail. Given the lack of a standard National Institute of Standards and Technology (Gaithersburg, Md.) sample for high temperature thermopower calibration, the disclosed calibration procedure shall be useful for calibration of new instruments.     

淹没式喷嘴反推力测量及其系柱试验装置设计

喷水推进具有噪声低、空泡性能好、易于矢量调节等优点，已成为水下机器人（ROV）推进技术的研究热点。喷水推进依靠喷嘴将泵产生的压力能转化为高压水动能，产生的反推力是压力和黏性阻力作用在高压腔以及喷嘴上的综合效果，该反推力的大小是推进性能研究的重点。对几种不同形状和参数的喷嘴反推力进行仿真和试验对比。采用Fluent软件对喷嘴进行流场内部仿真，并且通过后处理文件计算出喷嘴的反推力大小。现有测量喷嘴反推力的相关试验装置与实际工况存在较大差异，根据螺旋桨系柱推力试验方法，提出并设计一种新的喷嘴反推力测试装置。该试验装置动力由岸基高压海水泵源供给，通过溢流阀调节喷嘴入口压力，喷嘴固定在ROV框架上，利用拉力传感器测量ROV框架在喷嘴射流驱动下的系柱拖力，进而得到喷嘴射流反推力与输入压力的关系。该试验装置为在水淹没条件下研究喷水推进系统提供了试验条件。     

The National Ignition Facility neutron time-of-flight system and its initial performance (invited)

The National Ignition Facility (NIF) successfully completed its first inertial confinement fusion (ICF) campaign in 2009. A neutron time-of-flight (nTOF) system was part of the nuclear diagnostics used in this campaign. The nTOF technique has been used for decades on ICF facilities to infer the ion temperature of hot deuterium (D(2)) and deuterium-tritium (DT) plasmas based on the temporal Doppler broadening of the primary neutron peak. Once calibrated for absolute neutron sensitivity, the nTOF detectors can be used to measure the yield with high accuracy. The NIF nTOF system is designed to measure neutron yield and ion temperature over 11 orders of magnitude (from 10(8) to 10(19)), neutron bang time in DT implosions between 10(12) and 10(16), and to infer areal density for DT yields above 10(12). During the 2009 campaign, the three most sensitive neutron time-of-flight detectors were installed and used to measure the primary neutron yield and ion temperature from 25 high-convergence implosions using D(2) fuel. The OMEGA yield calibration of these detectors was successfully transferred to the NIF.     

Development of a two-dimensional dual pendulum thrust stand for Hall thrusters

A two-dimensional dual pendulum thrust stand was developed to measure thrust vectors [axial and horizontal (transverse) direction thrusts] of a Hall thruster. A thruster with a steering mechanism is mounted on the inner pendulum, and thrust is measured from the displacement between inner and outer pendulums, by which a thermal drift effect is canceled out. Two crossover knife-edges support each pendulum arm: one is set on the other at a right angle. They enable the pendulums to swing in two directions. Thrust calibration using a pulley and weight system showed that the measurement errors were less than 0.25 mN (1.4%) in the main thrust direction and 0.09 mN (1.4%) in its transverse direction. The thrust angle of the thrust vector was measured with the stand using the thruster. Consequently, a vector deviation from the main thrust direction of +/-2.3 degrees was measured with the error of +/-0.2 degrees under the typical operating conditions for the thruster.     

Theoretical and Experimental Study on the Axial Oil Film Stiffness of Tilting Pad Thrust Bearings

Tilting pad thrust bearings are a key component of marine propulsion shaft systems. The dynamic performance of thrust bearings has a significant influence on the propeller vibration. To investigate the axial oil film stiffness of tilting pad thrust bearings, a two-dimensional thermohydrodynamic model incorporating the vibration frequency is developed. The test apparatus and experimental identification model are also constructed. The axial oil film stiffness is experimentally identified at different speeds, loads, and temperature employing the hammer impulse excitation. The axial oil film stiffness between theoretical and experimental results is compared. The discrepancies are not more than 7% for 30 kN operation cases but increase with axial static load. This is partially because the influence of the pivot stiffness becomes obvious with the axial static load increase and cannot be ignored. The results indicate that axial oil film stiffness is at a magnitude of 10⁹ N·m^?1. Compared to foundation stiffness of the thrust bearing system, the influence of axial oil film stiffness needs to be considered for bearing–rotor system design of marine propulsion systems in engineering practice.     

Measurements of the internal magnetic field using the B-Stark motional Stark effect diagnostic on DIII-D (inivited)

Results are presented from the B-Stark diagnostic installed on the DIII-D tokamak. This diagnostic provides measurements of the magnitude and direction of the internal magnetic field. The B-Stark system is a version of a motional Stark effect (MSE) diagnostic based on the relative line intensities and spacing of the Stark split D(α) emission from injected neutral beams. This technique may have advantages over MSE polarimetry based diagnostics in future devices, such as the ITER. The B-Stark diagnostic technique and calibration procedures are discussed. The system is shown to provide accurate measurements of B(θ)/B(T) and ∣B∣ over a range of plasma conditions. Measurements have been made with toroidal fields in the range of 1.2-2.1 T, plasma currents in the range 0.5-2.0 MA, densities between 1.7 and 9.0×10(19)?m(-3), and neutral beam voltages between 50 and 81 keV. The viewing direction and polarization dependent transmission properties of the collection optics are found using an in situ beam into gas calibration. These results are compared to values found from plasma equilibrium reconstructions and the MSE polarimetry system on DIII-D.     

水下航行装置推进轴系扭转振动控制研究

主要讨论以摆盘式活塞发动机作为其主机的某水下航行装置推进轴系的扭转振动问题。首先建立了推进轴系的两个扭振模型，并进行了轴系的扭振计算。为了验证模型参数的准确性，对推进轴系进行了脉冲激励试验。以试验及计算结果为依据对推进轴系的几种不同方案进行了比较。最后对双轴调频减振方案进行分析，提出了一种合理可行的减振方法     

航空发动机推力销水平推力校准试验技术研究

为了得到航空发动机推力与推力销应变输出之间的线性关系,利用自行研制的载荷标定试验设备,对推力销的推力进行了校准试验.分别利用剪力应变桥和弯矩应变桥的改装测试方式,通过施加不同的水平推力对推力销的应变输出进行测量,得到推力销应变计输出与载荷的关系,即可得到载荷标定方程.通过数据处理与线性拟合的结果表明,两种应变测量方法均具有良好的线性度和重复性,均可用于航空发动机车台试验的推力测量.     

Lateral-torsional coupled vibration of a propulsion shaft with a diesel engine supported by a resilient mount

Lateral-torsional coupled vibration destabilizes a rotating system. The instability region of the rotating system is the speed range where the frequencies of the lateral and torsional modes intersect. In this study, the abnormally increased vibration of the typical diesel engine-reduction gear propulsion system for a naval vessel was examined in relation to the lateral-torsional coupled vibration under the assumption that it can be approximated by the Jeffcott rotor with three degrees of freedom. Through numerical and experimental investigation, a protection method was developed to avoid the unstable region of the diesel engine-reduction gear propulsion system.     

船舶推进轴系扭振模拟实验系统研究

根据船舶扭振的特点,采用模块化设计,开发船舶推进装置的扭振模拟实验平台;以齿盘和光电开关为传感器,NI的信号调理箱、数据采集卡等为主要器件实现扭振信号的采集;基于LabVIEW软件构建扭振监测系统。该系统实时监测推进轴系的振动情况,同时对振动信号做时域分析、频域分析和相位分析等。实验还模拟了激振力、负载等原因引起的扭振情况。实验结果表明,该方案实现了设计的目标,较好地满足了教学及科研需求。     

盾构推进液压系统节能技术分析与验证

为解决盾构推进液压系统能耗高的问题,以常见的"泵控调速+阀控调压"与"阀控调速+阀控调压"两种控制系统为研究对象,对其工作原理进行详细地说明;通过理论和仿真对比分析两种推进系统的节能效果,得出"泵控调速+阀控调压"推进系统相对于"阀控调速+阀控调压"的节能比达到30％ ～40％,其推进系统节能效果更明显;最后通过工程应...     

Reproducibility of electron microscope magnifications with digital display of individual lens currents

Quantitative measurements on electron micrographs with less than 10% error require precise calibration of all lenses contributing to the final image magnification. Calibration of the magnification to approximately 1.5% is easily attained by using simple statistical methods and a digital display milliampere meter capable of measuring the objective, intermediate and projector lens currents independently. The method detailed, readily adaptable to other electron microscopes, requires the projector lens current be held constant, with the magnification determined by varying the intermediate lens current and corrections made on the basis of calibrated objective lens current effect. The errors of magnification, approximately 1.5%, are the same range as the test grid variation which appears to be the limiting factor. Even with this limitation, magnifications have been determined reproducible to within less than 0.2% in daily use over a 6 month period.     

航空发动机试车台推力测量系统的校准

推力是航空发动机的重要设计指标,推力测量是发动机车台试验的重要测试项目。车台试验中为了准确的获得发动机推力,必须进行测量系统的校准。本文从台架静态校准和动态校准两个方面,分析了发动机台架推力测量系统的校准方法,指出中心校准和动态校准的方法有效的消除测量误差,提高测试精度。     

Effect of spanwise flexibility on propulsion performance of a flapping hydrofoil at low Reynolds number

Spanwise flexibility is a key factor influencing propulsion performance of pectoral foils.Performances of bionic fish with oscillating pectoral foils can be enhanced by properly selecting the spanwise flexibility.The influence law of spanwise flexibility on thrust generation and propulsion efficiency of a rectangular hydro-foil is discussed.Series foils constructed by the two-component silicon rubber are developed.NACA0015 shape of chordwise cross-section is employed.The foils are strengthened by fin rays of different rigidity to realize variant spanwise rigidity and almost the same chordwise flexibility.Experiments on a towing platform developed are carried out at low Reynolds numbers of 10 000,15 000,and 20 000 and Strouhal numbers from 0.1 to 1.The following experimental results are achieved: (1) The average forward thrust increases with the St number increased;(2) Certain degree of spanwise flexibility is beneficial to the forward thrust generation,but the thrust gap is not large for the fins of different spanwise rigidity;(3) The fin of the maximal spanwise flexibility owns the highest propulsion efficiency;(4) Effect of the Reynolds number on the propulsion efficiency is significant.The experimental results can be utilized as a reference in deciding the spanwise flexibility of bionic pectoral fins in designing of robotic fish prototype propelled by flapping-wing.     

工件质量和位置对单面立式平衡机测量误差的影响

针对永久标定式单面立式动平衡机对不同质量、不同高度的工件存在较大测量误差的问题,提出了一种用摆架扭摆效应分析误差来源的方法。将摆架系统处理成二自由度振动系统,根据力学原理建立了振动系统的运动方程;推导了系统振动中心的变化规律公式,分析了转速、工件位置和质量对振动中心的影响;推导了簧板绕振动中心的扭转刚度公式,同时分析了扭转刚度与振动中心位置间的关系。通过实验验证了扭转效应随工件质量、位置的变化规律,证明了簧板扭转刚度公式的正确性,分析了永久标定产生的误差,最大误差率为34.41%,说明了永久标定算法的不合理性,为优化测量算法提供了参考。