Femtosecond laser electronic excitation tagging (FLEET) is a powerful unseeded velocimetry technique typically used to measure one component of velocity along a line, or two or three components from a dot. In this Letter, we demonstrate a dotted-line FLEET technique which combines the dense profile capability of a line with the ability to perform two-component velocimetry with a single camera on a dot. Our set-up uses a single beam path to create multiple simultaneous spots, more than previously achieved in other FLEET spot configurations. We perform dotted-line FLEET measurements downstream of a highly turbulent, supersonic nitrogen free jet. Dotted-line FLEET is created by focusing light transmitted by a periodic mask with rectangular slits of 1.6 × 40 mm2 and an edge-to-edge spacing of 0.5 mm, then focusing the imaged light at the measurement region. Up to seven symmetric dots spaced approximately 0.9 mm apart, with mean full-width at half maximum diameters between 150 and 350 µm, are simultaneously imaged. Both streamwise and radial velocities are computed and presented in this Letter.
The development of new hypersonic flight vehicles is limited by the physical understanding that may be obtained from ground test facilities. This has motivated the present development of a temporally and spatially resolved velocimetry measurement for Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) Hypersonic Wind Tunnel (HWT) using Femtosecond Laser Electronic Excitation Tagging (FLEET). First, a multi-line FLEET technique has been created for the first time and tested in a supersonic jet, allowing simultaneous measurements of velocities along multiple profiles in a flow. Secondly, two different approaches have been demonstrated for generating dotted FLEET lines. One employs a slit mask pattern focused into points to yield a dotted line, allowing for two- or three-component velocity measurements free of contamination between components. The other dotted-line approach is based upon an optical wedge array and yields a grid of points rather than a dotted line. Two successful FLEET measurement campaigns have been conducted in SNL’s HWT. The first effort established optimal diagnostic configurations in the hypersonic environment based on earlier benchtop reproductions, including validation of the use of a 267 nm beam to boost the measurement signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) with minimal risk of perturbing the flow and greater simplicity than a comparable resonant technique at 202 nm. The same FLEET system subsequently was reconstituted to demonstrate the ability to make velocimetry measurements of hypersonic turbulence in a realistic flow field. Mean velocity profiles and turbulence intensity profiles of the shear layer in the wake of a hypersonic cone model were measured at several different downstream stations, proving the viability of FLEET as a hypersonic diagnostic.
We present the design, fabrication, and initial characterization of a CMOS compatible, ultra-high bandwidth, bulk-micro machined, optomechanical accelerometer. Displacement detection is achieved via a SiN integrated photonics Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) fabricated on the surface of the device that is optomechanically coupled to acceleration-induced deformation of the accelerometer's proof mass tethers. The device is designed to measure vibrations at microsecond timescales with high dynamic range for the characterization of shock dynamics.
This experimental study explores the fluid-structure interactions occurring between a control surface and the hypersonic flow deflected by it. The control surface is simplified for this work as a spanwise finite wedge placed on a longitudinally sliced part of the cone. The front surface of the wedge is a thin panel which is designed to respond to the unsteady fluid loading arising from the shock-wave/boundary layer interactions. Experiments have been conducted in the Sandia Hypersonic Wind Tunnel at Mach 5 and Mach 8 at wedge angles of 10◦, 20◦ and 30◦ . High-speed schlieren and backside panel accelerometer measurements capture the unsteady flow dynamics and structural response of the thin panel, respectively. For attached or small separation interactions, the transitional regime has the strongest panel fluctuations with convective shock undulations induced by the boundary layer disturbance shown to be associated with dominant panel vibrations. For large separated interactions, shear layer flapping can excite select panel modes. Heating of the panel causes a downward shift in natural mode frequencies.
This study seeks to simplify the optical requirements for multi-line FLEET (Femtosecond Laser Electronic Excitation Tagging) generation by focusing the image of a periodic slit-mask with a cylindrical and spherical lens. Geometry effects on the signal were analyzed over fifteen mask iterations. The signal for each mask was found to vary with mask standoff from the focusing optics, which was optimized based on maximizing the Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) for each mask. The number of generated lines was found to decrease with slit spacing while the separation of the lines increased. FLEET line spacing was determined by a constant magnification value of the imaged masks’ slit spacing. From the geometry study, two masks that produced three to five lines spaced at 0.8–1 mm apart with SNR > 4 were chosen to demonstrate the multi-line technique in a supersonic free-jet. Velocity calculations from this data showed good agreement with schlieren imaging of compressible flow structures.
Fluctuating boundary layer pressure fluctuations are an important loading component for reentry bodies. Characterization of these loads is often described through cross-spectral density-based definitions, such as, longitudinal and lateral coherence, spatial correlation and frequency power spectral density. The widely utilized Corcos separable coherence model functional form has been employed in this study. While the classical Corcos D xD style model using a self-similar velocity-spacing variable e.g. (here the subscript denotes a dimensional U vaiable) has been effectively used for low speed simulations, high speed problems often require a model that involves both the self-similar variable and the sensor spacing D Here we examine longitudinal coherence formulations that include explicit D behavior as well as the self-similar variable. Examination of an analytical model/synthetic pressure fluctuation correlation function developed here clearly demonstrate that the self-similar form may need to be supplement by non-similar information. Using the synthetic space-time correlation expression, a coherence model which uses self-similar variables and explicit (but continuous) spatial information is proposed. Estimates for the parameters in the coherence model are derived using asymptotic arguments available from the synthetic result. Further, relationships are derived to estimate coherence model parameters and their connection to longitudinal correlation behavior assuming exponential auto-spectral density models. Comparison of these expressions with wind tunnel test and DNS simulation shows good comparison. Measurements from flight tests which deviate greatly from the classical self-similar form can be successfully described using the extended model although the coherence model parameters must be modified. In summary, an extended coherence model is developed which provides good explanations of longitudinal coherence and correlation behavior.
A simple linear configuration for multi-line femtosecond laser electronic excitation tagging (FLEET) velocimetry is used for the first time, to the best of our knowledge, to image an overexpanded unsteady supersonic jet. The FLEET lines are spaced 0.5-1.0mmapart, and up to six lines can be used simultaneously to visualize the flowfield. These lines are created using periodic masks, despite the mask blocking 25%-30%of the 10 mJ incident beam.Maps of mean singlecomponent velocity in the direction along the principal flow axis, and turbulence intensity in that same direction, are created using multi-line FLEET, and computed velocities agree well with those obtained from single-line (traditional) FLEET. Compared to traditional FLEET, multi-line FLEET offers increased simultaneous spatial coverage and the ability to produce spatial correlations in the streamwise direction. This FLEET permutation is especially well suited for short-duration test facilities.
The design, construction, and testing of a high-magnification, long working-distance plenoptic camera is reported. A plenoptic camera uses a microlens array to enable resolution of the spatial and angular information of the incoming light field. Instantaneous images can be numerically refocused and perspective shifted in post-processing to enable threedimensional (3D) resolution of a scene. Prior to this work, most applications of plenoptic imaging were limited to relatively low magnifications (1× or less) or small working distances. Here, a unique system is developed with enables 5× magnification at a working distance of over a quarter meter. Experimental results demonstrate ~25 µm spatial resolution with 3D imaging capabilities. This technology is demonstrated for 3D imaging of the shock structure in a underexpanded, Mach 3.3 free air jet.
Direct numerical simulations (DNS) were conducted to characterize the pressure fluctuations under the turbulent portion of the boundary layer over a sharp 7◦ half-angle cone at a nominal freestream Mach number of 8 and a unit Reynolds number of Reunit = 13.4 × 106/m. The axisymmetric cone geometry and the flow conditions of the DNS matched those measured in the Sandia Hypersonic Wind Tunnel at Mach 8 (Sandia HWT-8). The DNS-predicted wall pressure statistics, including the root-mean-square (r.m.s.) fluctuations and the power spectral density (PSD), were compared with those measured in the Sandia HWT-8. A good comparison between the DNS and the experiment was shown for the r.m.s. and PSD of wall-pressure fluctuations after spatial averaging was applied to the DNS data over an area similar to the sensing area of the transducer. The finite size of the PCB132 transducer, with a finite sensing area of d+ ≈ 50, caused significant spectral attenuation at high frequencies in the experimentally measured PSD, and the loss in sensor resolution resulted in an approximately 27% reduction in r.m.s. pressure fluctuations. The attenuation due to finite sensor sizes has only a small influence on wall-pressure coherence, as indicated by the good comparisons between the DNS without spatial filtering and the experiment for transducers with either streamwise or spanwise separations. The characteristics of turbulent pressure fluctuations at the cone surface were also compared with those over a flat plate and at the wind-tunnel nozzle wall to assess the effect of flow configurations on the scaling relations of turbulent pressure fluctuations. The inner scale was found to successfully collapse wall-pressure PSD of the cone with those over a nozzle wall and on a flat plate at a similar freestream Mach number. For all the three flow configurations, the Corcos model was found to deliver good predictions of wall pressure coherence over intermediate and high frequencies, and the Corcos parameters for the streamwise and spanwise coherence at Mach 8 were found to be similar to those reported in the literature at lower supersonic Mach numbers.
Bench-top tests are conducted to characterize Femtosecond Laser Electronic Excitation Tagging (FLEET) in static low pressure (35 mTorr-760 Torr) conditions, and to measure the acoustic disturbance caused by the resulting filament as a function of tagging wavelength and energy. The FLEET line thickness as a function of pressure and delay is described by a simple diffusion model. Initial FLEET measurements in a Mach 8 flow show that gate times of ≥ 1µs can produce visible smearing of the FLEET emission and challenge the traditional Gaussian fitting methods used to find the line center. To minimize flow perturbations and uncertainty of the final line position, several recommendations are offered: using third harmonic FLEET at 267 nm for superior signal levels with lower energy deposition than both 800 nm and 400 nm FLEET, and short camera delays and exposure times to reduce fitting uncertainty. This guidance is implemented in a Mach 8 test condition and results are presented.
Two novel and challenging applications of high-frequency pressure-sensitive paint were attempted for ground testing at Sandia National Labs. Blast tube testing, typically used to assess the response of a system to an incident blast wave, was the first application. The paint was tested to show feasibility for supplementing traditional pressure instrumentation in the harsh outdoor environment. The primary challenge was the background illumination from sunlight and time-varying light contamination from the associated explosion. Optimal results were obtained in pre-dawn hours when sunlight contamination was absent; additional corrections must be made for the intensity of the explosive illumination. A separate application of the paint for acoustic testing was also explored to provide the spatial distribution of loading on systems that do not contain pressure instrumentation. In that case, the challenge was the extremely low level of pressure variations that the paint must resolve (120 dB). Initial testing indicated the paint technique merits further development for a larger scale reverberant chamber test with higher loading levels near 140 dB.
Femtosecond Laser Electronic Excitation Tagging (FLEET) is used to measure velocity flowfields in the wake of a sharp 7◦ half-angle cone in nitrogen at Mach 8, over freestream Reynolds numbers from 4.3∗106 /m to 13.8∗106 /m. Flow tagging reveals expected wake features such as the separation shear layer and two-dimensional velocity components. Frequency-tripled FLEET has a longer lifetime and is more energy efficient by tenfold compared to 800 nm FLEET. Additionally, FLEET lines written with 267 nm are three times longer and 25% thinner than that written with 800 nm at a 1 µs delay. Two gated detection systems are compared. While the PIMAX 3 ICCD offers variable gating and fewer imaging artifacts than a LaVision IRO coupled to a Photron SA-Z, its slow readout speed renders it ineffective for capturing hypersonic velocity fluctuations. FLEET can be detected to 25 µs following excitation within 10 mm downstream of the model base, but delays greater than 4 µs have deteriorated signal-to-noise and line fit uncertainties greater than 10%. In a hypersonic nitrogen flow, exposures of just several hundred nanoseconds are long enough to produce saturated signals and/or increase the line thickness, thereby adding to measurement uncertainty. Velocity calculated between the first two delays offer the lowest uncertainty (less than 3% of the mean velocity).