Calibrating a finite element model to test data is often required to accurately characterize a joint, predict its dynamic behavior, and determine fastener fatigue life. In this work, modal testing, model calibration, and fatigue analysis are performed for a bolted structure, and various joint modeling techniques are compared. The structure is designed to test a single bolt to fatigue failure by utilizing an electrodynamic modal shaker to axially force the bolted joint at resonance. Modal testing is done to obtain the dynamic properties, evaluate finite element joint modeling techniques, and assess the effectiveness of a vibration approach to fatigue testing of bolts. Results show that common joint models can be inaccurate in predicting bolt loads, and even when updated using modal test data, linear structural models alone may be insufficient in evaluating fastener fatigue.
Calibrating a finite element model to test data is often required to accurately characterize a joint, predict its dynamic behavior, and determine fastener fatigue life. In this work, modal testing, model calibration, and fatigue analysis are performed for a bolted structure, and various joint modeling techniques are compared. The structure is designed to test a single bolt to fatigue failure by utilizing an electrodynamic modal shaker to axially force the bolted joint at resonance. Modal testing is done to obtain the dynamic properties, evaluate finite element joint modeling techniques, and assess the effectiveness of a vibration approach to fatigue testing of bolts. Results show that common joint models can be inaccurate in predicting bolt loads, and even when updated using modal test data, linear structural models alone may be insufficient in evaluating fastener fatigue.
Fluid-structure interactions were studies on a 7° half-angle cone in the Sandia Hypersonic Wind Tunnel at Mach 5 and 8 and in the Purdue Boeing/AFOSR Mach 6 Quiet Tunnel. A thin composite panel was integrated into the cone and the response to boundary-layer disturbances was characterized by accelerometers on the backside of the panel. Here, under quiet-flow conditions at Mach 6, the cone boundary layer remained laminar. Artificially generated turbulent spots excited a directionally dependent panel response which would last much longer than the spot duration.
Fluid-structure interactions were studied on a 7◦ half-angle cone in the Sandia Hypersonic Wind Tunnel at Mach 5 and 8 and in the Purdue Boeing/AFOSR Mach 6 Quiet Tunnel. A thin composite panel was integrated into the cone and the response to boundary-layer disturbances was characterized by accelerometers on the backside of the panel. Under quiet-flow conditions at Mach 6, the cone boundary layer remained laminar. Artificially generated turbulent spots excited a directionally dependent panel response which would last much longer than the spot duration. When the spot generation frequency matched a structural natural frequency of the panel, resonance would occur and responses over 200 times greater than under a laminar boundary layer were obtained. At Mach 5 and 8 under noisy flow conditions, natural transition driven by the wind-tunnel acoustic noise dominated the panel response. An elevated vibrational response was observed during transition at frequencies corresponding to the distribution of turbulent spots in the transitional flow. Once turbulent flow developed, the structural response dropped because the intermittent forcing from the spots no longer drove panel vibration.
Effective mass for a particular mode in a particular direction is classically calculated using a combination of fixed base mode shapes, the mass matrix, and a rigid body mode shape from a finite element model. Recently, an experimental method was developed to calculate effective mass using free experimental mode shapes of a structure on a fixture (the base) along with the measured mass of the fixture and of the test article. The method required three steps. The first step involved constraining all the free modes of the fixture except one rigid body mode in the direction of interest. The second step involved calculating pseudo-modal participation factors for this case. The third step involved constraining the final fixture rigid body degree of freedom and utilizing the constraint matrices with pseudo-modal participation factors to obtain the estimate of the standard modal participation factors which can be converted to effective mass. This work provides a simpler formulation. After the constraint in step one above, the effective masses are calculated directly from the mass normalized mode shapes of the fixture. In most cases this method gives the same answer as the original approach, within experimental error. In some instances, it appears more robust with low signal to noise ratios. It also provides better physical insight as to which modes have significant effective mass in a particular direction. The new approach is illustrated by experimental example.
Fluid-structure interactions were studied on a 7° half-angle cone in the Sandia Hypersonic Wind Tunnel at Mach 8 over a range of freestream Reynolds numbers between 3.3 and 14.5 × 106/m. A thin panel with tunable structural natural frequencies was integrated into the cone and exposed to naturally developing boundary layers. An elevated panel response was measured during boundary-layer transition at frequencies corresponding to the turbulent burst rate, and lower vibrations were measured under a turbulent boundary layer. Controlled perturbations from an electrical discharge were then introduced into the boundary layer at varying frequencies corresponding to the structural natural frequencies of the panel. The perturbations were not strong enough to drive a panel response exceeding that due to natural transition. Instead at high repetition rates, the perturber modified the turbulent burst rate and intermittency on the cone and therefore changed the conditions for when an elevated transitional panel vibration response occurred.
Experiments were performed to understand the complex fluid-structure interactions that occur during aircraft internal store carriage. A cylindrical store was installed in a rectangular cavity having a length-to-depth ratio of 3.33 and a length-to-width ratio of 1. The Mach number ranged from 0.6 to 2.5 and the incoming boundary layer was turbulent. Fast-response pressure measurements provided aeroacoustic loading in the cavity, while triaxial accelerometers provided simultaneous store response. Despite occupying only 6% of the cavity volume, the store significantly altered the cavity acoustics. The store responded to the cavity flow at its natural structural frequencies, and it exhibited a directionally dependent response to cavity resonance. Specifically, cavity tones excited the store in the streamwise and wall-normal directions consistently, whereas a spanwise response was observed only occasionally. The streamwise and wall-normal responses were attributed to the longitudinal pressure waves and shear layer vortices known to occur during cavity resonance. Although the spanwise response to cavity tones was limited, broadband pressure fluctuations resulted in significant spanwise accelerations at store natural frequencies. The largest vibrations occurred when a cavity tone matched a structural natural frequency, although energy was transferred more efficiently to natural frequencies having predominantly streamwise and wall-normal motions.
Fluid-structure interactions that occur during aircraft internal store carriage were experimentally explored at Mach 0.94 and 1.47 using a generic, aerodynamic store installed in a rectangular cavity having a length-to-depth ratio of 7. Similar to previous studies using a cylindrical store, the aerodynamic store responded to the cavity flow at its natural structural frequencies, and it exhibited a directionally dependent response to cavity resonance. Cavity tones excited the store in the streamwise and wall-normal directions consistently, whereas the spanwise response was much more limited. The store had interchangeable components to vary its natural frequencies by about 10 - 300 Hz. By tuning natural frequencies, mode-matched cases were explored where a prominent cavity tone frequency matched a structural natural frequency of the store. Mode matching produced substantial increases in store vibrations, though the response of the store continued to scale linearly with the dynamic pressure or loading in the bay. Near mode matching frequencies, the response of the store was quite sensitive as changes in cavity tone frequencies of 1% altered store vibrations by as much as a factor of two.
Experiments were performed to understand the complex fluid-structure interactions that occur during internal store carriage. A cylindrical store was installed in a cavity having a length-to-depth ratio of 3.33 and a length-to-width ratio of 1. The Mach number ranged from 0.6 - 2.5 and the incoming turbulent boundary layer thickness was about 30-40% of the cavity depth. Fast-response pressure measurements provided aeroacoustic loading in the cavity, while triaxial accelerometers and laser Doppler vibrometry provided simultaneous store response. Despite occupying only 6% of the cavity volume, the store significantly altered the cavity acoustics. The store responded to the cavity flow at its natural structural frequencies, as previously determined with modal hammer tests, and it exhibited a directional dependence to cavity resonance. Specifically, cavity tones excited the store in the streamwise and wall-normal directions consistently, while a spanwise response was observed only occasionally. The streamwise and wall-normal responses were attributed to the known pressure gradients in these directions. Furthermore, spanwise vibrations were greater at the downstream end of the cavity, attributable to decreased levels of flow coherence near the aftwall. Collectively, the data indicate the store response to be dependent on direction of vibration and position along the length of the store.