Research Projects

JET-AIRFRAME INTERACTIONS FOR NOISE SUPPRESSION

PI Reda Mankbadi

JET-AIRFRAME INTERACTIONS FOR NOISE SUPPRESSION

The Embry‑Riddle team developed a passive noise suppression technology utilizing the interactions of the airframe with the jet plume. In this technology, the flat surface of the airframe adjacent to the jet plume is modified to create a slightly wavy surface instead. Such design modification can be applied to the existing design concepts with engine mounted under the wing, as well as, the top-mounted engine configurations.

The near-field perturbations are reflected by the wavy surface to create an excitation wave to amplify the jet and the shear layer instability. The wavy-surface parameters are designed such that the excitation frequency is the harmonic of the fundamental frequency responsible for the peak noise. Through nonlinear fundamental-subharmonic interaction, the sound source and its radiated far-field noise are reduced.

To verify this concept, high-fidelity simulations of a supersonic rectangular jet in the vicinity of the airframe surface were carried out. Results show that when the flat airframe surface is reduced by a wavy one, the radiated sound was reduced by 3.7dB for top-mounted engine, and by 2.6dB for under-airframe engine.

Implemntation of wavy surface design to suppress jet-surface interaction noise.

(Left) Top-mounted engine configuration, (Right) Conventional enginr-under airframe design

Acoustic spectra at the far-field observer 42 diameters away from the nozzle exit

(Left) Engine mounted on top of airframe, (Right) Engine mounted under the wing

Categories: Faculty-Staff

Fundamental Experimental and Numerical Combustion Study of H2 Containing Fuels for Gas Turbines

PI Scott Martin

This project is a University Turbine Systems research grant funded by the Department of Energy. In collaboration with the University of Central Florida, Purdue University and the University of New Mexico, Embry‑Riddle will develop fundamental data and modeling of H2 and NH3 fuels for gas turbine power plants.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

Human Factors Awareness Training for FAA Aviation Safety Specialists Within Aircraft Certification and FAA Flight Standards

PI Scott Martin

In this project, which is funded by the FAA, Embry‑Riddle and Kent University will develop training for individuals within the FAA’s Aviation Safety Flight Standards Service who have expertise and job responsibilities related to the evaluation of aircraft systems design, maintenance, operations, procedures and pilot performance.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

Modeling Plume Afterburning Shutdown With a Double-Conditioned CMC

PI Scott Martin

This project will develop the double conditioned Conditional Moment Closure (CMC) turbulent combustion model for afterburning shutdown of hypersonic rocket exhaust plumes.

This is an Army Sequential Phase II STTR program in collaboration with Reaction Systems Inc., University of Central Florida and Propulsion Systems Inc. This project will develop the double conditioned Conditional Moment Closure (CMC) turbulent combustion model for afterburning shutdown of hypersonic rocket exhaust plumes.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

The impact of corporate social responsibility communication on corporate reputation

PI Doreen McGunagle

CO-I Dixie Button

The goal of this research project is to analyze the ethics of social media used by U.S. airlines. In particular, how the four major carriers, Southwest Airlines, Delta, United, and American Airlines Group, stack up against each other in terms of privacy and the ethical use of information obtained via social media sites such as Facebook.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is increasingly more important for firms in today’s global marketplace and effective communication of CSR initiatives is vital toward enhancing a company’s reputation and its sales revenues. With this consideration, the reputations of firms in the Aerospace and Defense (A & D) industry worldwide, in conjunction with their use of social media were examined to validate a link between the use of social media to communicate CSR activities and a firm’s reputation ranking.

Methodology involved a qualitative content analysis of the online and social media presence of the top 20 A & D companies from the Deloitte Toche Tohmatso Limited (DTTL) 2014 Global A & D financial performance study. Data from six indicators of CSR: environment, community relations, diversity, employee relations, human rights, and client comments was examined.

According to the findings, firms utilizing social media for CSR communication should expect improved reputation ratings. All top 20 A & D companies publish at least four CSR indicators on social media platforms. The conclusion reached is that while CSR content via social media can lead to higher reputation ratings, companies need to strategically choose the ideal number of CSR indicators, to position themselves in the global marketplace.

Categories: Faculty-Staff Graduate

Behavior of superalloys subjected to fatigue loads under high temperature

PI Alberto Mello

CO-I Paulina De La Torre Morales

CO-I Open Position - New students are welcome

This study is evaluating what initial conditions can activate cubic slip planes, then the level of accommodation and strain homogenization within the grain, and how a given initial condition affects the material behavior when subjected to operational cyclic loads under high temperature.

Ni-based super alloys are widely used in turbine engines mainly due to its high strength and fatigue resistance at elevated temperatures. One hypothesis to explain its atypical characteristic among metals is that a cross-slip mechanism is in place. The activation of {100} cubic slip systems along of the octahedral slip planes {111} in Ni-based superalloys has been verified when under high strain and temperature. The material would exhibit a more homogeneous strain distribution and less strain localization. We seek for the ideal precondition that will improve the endurance of Ni-based superalloy (IN 718) samples subjected to operational loading. We evaluate the initial conditions that activate cubic slip planes, the level of accommodation, and strain homogenization within the grain. With focus on the deformation mechanism, the sample microstructure can be fully characterized by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and the slip systems, after the applied pre-condition, can be tracked via digital image correlation (DIC).

Accomplished tasks:

(a) samples’ manufacturing, (b) sample polishing and preparation, (c) furnace installation and operational tests, (d) development of laboratory procedures, equipment and microscopes (optical and SEM), (d) calibration and controller fine tuning for the MTS tensile testing machine, and (e) fatigue test with several specimens, including control samples and modified pre-conditions

Next steps:

Characterization of the microstructure of tested specimens under special conditions via EBSD to identify the slip planes and confirm or not the activation of cubic slip systems.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

Measuring Interstellar Temperature and Ionization Variations Using Observations of Faint Diffuse [OII] Emission

PI Edwin Mierkiewicz

The interstellar medium (ISM) plays a vital role in the ongoing cycle of stellar birth and death as well as galactic evolution. However the role of interstellar matter, from how its properties are influenced by stars to how, in turn, its properties influence star formation is poorly understood.

Within the past decade substantial strides have been made towards unraveling the mysteries of a major ISM component, the widespread warm ionized medium (WIM). The advances were enabled by innovative spectroscopic techniques to detect and study extremely faint interstellar emission lines in the visible spectral region. With such observations it is possible to explore the connection between the Galactic disk and halo as energy and gas are transferred away from massive star-forming regions to large distances from the midplane. An especially exciting development in this area is the evidence for temperature variations and the existence of a previously unrecognized source of heating within the WIM. The emission line of ionized oxygen in the near ultraviolet spectral region (372.7 nm) is key to exploring variations in temperature and ionization state within the gas, and for investigating the role of this additional heating. Our [OII] observations will (1) provide the only opportunity to separate unambiguously variations in temperature from variations in ionization conditions in the warm ionized medium of our Galaxy and (2) confirm whether H-alpha, [NII], and [SII] data can provide reliable temperature information about diffuse ionized gas in our own and other galaxies.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

High Spectral Resolution Observations of Lunar Exospheric Emissions

PI Edwin Mierkiewicz

We are employing high-resolution Fabry-Perot spectroscopy of neutral sodium and potassium emission to investigate the morphology and dynamics of the lunar sodium exosphere. Likely atmosphere source mechanisms are thermal desorption, photo-desorption, ion sputtering, and meteoric impact ablation.

Their relative importance remains uncertain, both with regard to spatial and to temporal trends. Once released, sputtered gases in the lunar atmosphere can be pulled back to the regolith by gravity, escape to space, get pushed away by solar radiation pressure, or become photoionized and swept away by the solar wind. To test hypotheses about the sources, sinks, and escape of the lunar atmosphere, velocity-resolved observations under different lunar phases, altitudes, latitudes, and time histories are being made to help understand factors that link resultant morphologies to sources and solar radiation effects. These observations will help constrain atmospheric and surface-process modeling, and help quantify the source and escape mechanisms.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

Environmental Analysis of Convective Initiation Events in Central Florida using Integrated Mobile Observation

PI Shawn Milrad

PI Daniel Halperin

This research collaboration with the National Weather Service (NWS) Weather Forecast Office Tampa Bay aims to develop an ingredients-based methodology to help improve forecasts of first-strike cloud-to-ground lightning strikes in summer thunderstorms across Central Florida. Results will be used to construct a new forecast tool that will aid NWS forecasters in protecting the region’s life and property from these dangerous lightning events.

Lightning is a major hazard to life and property in Florida and annually leads the nation in lightning strikes and fatalities. The proposed research collaboration with the National Weather Service (NWS) Weather Forecast Office Tampa Bay aims to develop an ingredients-based methodology to help forecast first strike cloud-to-ground lightning strikes in warm-season thunderstorms across Central Florida. A comprehensive environmental analysis of these convective initiation events is being performed using numerous observational datasets, including mobile radar and surface observations from recent ERAU field courses and campaigns. The environmental analysis will examine first-strike events across the eight large-scale flow regimes previously identified by NWS Tampa Bay. A particular focus is placed on events that occurred during four weeks of ERAU field courses/campaigns in 2015 and 2018, allowing for the unique integration of mobile observations. Results are being used to construct a new forecast tool integrated with existing radar- and satellite-based lightning tools, to improve first-strike alert lead times. Also, the proposed project has established a fruitful collaborative research relationship between ERAU and NWS Tampa Bay while providing research experience and training for several ERAU undergraduate meteorology majors. These undergraduate students have completed much of the work on the project and have gotten to interact with NWS Tampa Bay personnel. It is expected that this project will also stimulate future more significant research collaborations between ERAU Meteorology and regional NWS forecast offices.

Categories: Faculty-Staff

Pilot-in-the-Loop UAS Mobile Research Test-Bed

PI Hever Moncayo

CO-I May Chan

CO-I Ashwini Agrawal

CO-I Agustin Giovagnoli

This project aims to develop and implement a Mobile UAV Ground Control Station (GCS) supporting aviation safety research with pilot-in-the-loop capabilities using unmanned aerial systems platforms, in which flight conditions, such as systems failures, could be simulated in real-time to characterize pilot response, control laws performance, and human-machine and control laws interactions.

A fruitful achievement of this project will provide a platform to validate and assess new concepts and technologies that are beneficial for improving engineering fidelity of early systems integration testing based on pilots feedback and their interaction with on-board flight controls systems.

Categories: Faculty-Staff