Growth and shape control of disks by bending and extension

Differential growth of thin elastic bodies furnishes a surprisingly simple explanation of the complex and intriguing shapes of many biological systems, such as plant leaves and organs. Similarly, inelastic strains induced by thermal effects or active materials in layered plates are extensively used to control the curvature of thin engineering structures. Such behaviour inspires us to distinguish and to compare two possible modes of differential growth not normally compared to each other, in order to reveal the full range of out-of-plane shapes of an initially flat disk. The first growth mode, frequently employed by engineers, is characterised by direct bending strains through the thickness, and the second mode, mainly apparent in biological systems, is driven by extensional strains of the middle surface. When each mode is considered separately, it is shown that buckling is common to both modes, leading to bistable shapes: growth from bending strains results in a double-curvature limit at buckling, followed by almost developable deformation in which the Gaussian curvature at buckling is conserved; during extensional growth, out-of-plane distortions occur only when the buckling condition is reached, and the Gaussian curvature continues to increase. When both growth modes are present, it is shown that, generally, larger displacements are obtained under in-plane growth when the disk is relatively thick and growth strains are small, and vice versa. It is also shown that shapes can be mono-, bi-, tri- or neutrally stable, depending on the growth strain levels and the material properties: furthermore, it is shown that certain combinations of growth modes result in a free, or natural, response in which the doubly curved shape of disk exactly matches the imposed strains. Such diverse behaviour, in general, may help to realise more effective actuation schemes for engineering structures. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Shape signifiers for control of a low-order compressor model

Rotating stall and surge, two instability mechanisms limiting the performance of aeroengines compressors, are studied on the third-order Moore-Greitzer model. The skewness of the compressor characteristic, a single parameter shape signifier, is shown to determine the key qualitative properties of feedback control.

Control of material transport through pulse shape manipulation-a development toward designer pulses

The variety of laser systems available to industrial laser users is growing and the choice of the correct laser for a material target application is often based on an empirical assessment. Industrial master oscillator power amplifier systems with tuneable temporal pulse shapes have now entered the market, providing enormous pulse parameter flexibility in an already crowded parameter space. In this paper, an approach is developed to design interaction parameters based on observations of material responses. Energy and material transport mechanisms are studied using pulsed digital holography, post process analysis techniques and finite-difference modelling to understand the key response mechanisms for a variety of temporal pulse envelopes incident on a silicon (1/1/1) substrate. The temporal envelope is shown to be the primary control parameter of the source term that determines the subsequent material response and the resulting surface morphology. A double peak energy-bridged temporal pulse shape designed through direct application of holographic imaging data is shown to substantially improve surface quality. © 2014 IEEE.

Normal shock boundary layer control with various vortex generator geometries

Various vortex generators which include ramp, split-ramp and a new hybrid concept "ramped-vane" are investigated under normal shock conditions with a diffuser at Mach number of 1.3. The dimensions of the computational domain were designed using Reynolds Average Navier-Stokes studies to be representative of the flow in an external-compression supersonic inlet. Using this flow geometry, various vortex generator concepts were studied with Implicit Large Eddy Simulation. In general, the ramped-vane provided increased vorticity compared to the other devices and reduced the separation length downstream of the device centerline. In addition, the size, edge gap and streamwise position respect to the shock were studied for the ramped-vane and it was found that a height of about half the boundary thickness and a large trailing edge gap yielded a fully attached flow downstream of the device. This ramped-vane also provided the largest reduction in the turbulent kinetic energy and pressure fluctuations. Additional benefits include negligible drag while the reductions in boundary layer displacement thickness and shape factor were seen compared to other devices. © 2010 by Sang Lee.

Normal shock boundary layer control with various vortex generator geometries

Various vortex generators which include ramp, split-ramp and a new hybrid concept "ramped-vane" are investigated under normal shock conditions with a diffuser at Mach number of 1.3. The dimensions of the computational domain were designed using Reynolds Average Navier-Stokes studies to be representative of the flow in an external-compression supersonic inlet. Using this flow geometry, various vortex generator concepts were studied with Implicit Large Eddy Simulation. In general, the ramped-vane provided increased vorticity compared to the other devices and reduced the separation length downstream of the device centerline. In addition, the size, edge gap and streamwise position respect to the shock were studied for the ramped-vane and it was found that a height of about half the boundary thickness and a large trailing edge gap yielded a fully attached flow downstream of the device. This ramped-vane also provided the largest reduction in the turbulent kinetic energy and pressure fluctuations. Additional benefits include negligible drag while the reductions in boundary layer displacement thickness and shape factor were seen compared to other devices. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.

TWO TUTORIAL EXAMPLES OF MULTIVARIABLE CONTROL SYSTEM DESIGN.

Two tutorial examples are presented which illustrate different methods of designing practical multivariable control systems using frequency-domain techniques. In the first case eigenvector alignment techniques are used to manipulate and shape the generalized Nyquist diagrams, while in the second case LQG theory in conjunction with singular value plots is employed. In both cases the designs are carried out on a modern computer-aided control-system design package.

Experimental study into the flow physics of three-dimensional shock control bumps

This paper describes a fundamental experimental study of the flow structure around a single three-dimensional (3D) transonic shock control bump (SCB) mounted on a flat surface in a wind tunnel. Tests have been carried out with a Mach 1.3 normal shock wave located at a number of streamwise positions relative to the SCB. Details of the flow have been studied using the experimental techniques of schlieren photography, surface oil flow visualization, pressure sensitive paint, and laser Doppler anemometry. The results of the work build on the findings of previous researchers and shed new light on the flow physics of 3D SCBs. It is found that spanwise pressure gradients across the SCB ramp and the shape of the SCB sides affect the magnitude and uniformity of flow turning generated by the bump, which can impact on the spanwise propagation of the quasi-two-dimensional (2D) shock structure produced by a 3DSCB. At the bump crest, vortices can form if the pressure on the crest is significantly lower than at either side of the bump. The trajectories of these vortices, which are relatively weak, are strongly influenced by any spanwise pressure gradients across the bump tail. Asignificant difference between 2D and 3D SCBs highlighted by the study is the impact of spanwise pressure gradients on 3D SCB performance. The magnitude of these spanwise pressure gradients is determined largely by SCB geometry and shock position. Copyright © 2011 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc.