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Application of Pinniped Vibrissae to AeropropulsionVibrissae of Phoca Vitulina (Harbor Seal) and Mirounga Angustirostris (Elephant Seal) possess undulations along their length. Harbor Seal Vibrissae were shown to reduce vortex induced vibrations and reduce drag compared to appropriately scaled cylinders and ellipses. Samples of Harbor Seal vibrissae, Elephant Seal vibrissae and California Sea Lion vibrissae were collected from the Marine Mammal Center in California. CT scanning, microscopy and 3D scanning techniques were utilized to characterize the whiskers. Computational fluid dynamics simulations of the whiskers were carried out to compare them to an ellipse and a cylinder. Leading edge parameters from the whiskers were used to create a 3D profile based on a modern power turbine blade. The NASA SW-2 facility was used to perform wind tunnel cascade testing on the 'Seal Blades'. Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations were used to study incidence angles from -37 to +10 degrees on the aerodynamic performance of the Seal Blade. The tests and simulations were conducted at a Reynolds number of 100,000. The Seal Blades showed consistent performance improvements over the baseline configuration. It was determined that a fuel burn reduction of approximately 5 could be achieved for a fixed wing aircraft. Noise reduction potential is also explored.
Document ID
20160009221
Acquisition Source
Glenn Research Center
Document Type
Presentation
Authors
Shyam, Vikram
(NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH United States)
Ameri, Ali
(Ohio State Univ. Columbus, OH, United States)
Poinsatte, Phil
(NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH United States)
Thurman, Doug
(Department of the Army Washington, DC, United States)
Wroblewski, Adam
(NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH United States)
Snyder, Chris
(NASA Glenn Research Center Cleveland, OH United States)
Date Acquired
July 20, 2016
Publication Date
June 15, 2015
Subject Category
Fluid Mechanics And Thermodynamics
Aircraft Design, Testing And Performance
Report/Patent Number
GRC-E-DAA-TN24354
Meeting Information
Meeting: ASME Turbo Expo 2015
Location: Montreal
Country: Canada
Start Date: June 15, 2015
End Date: June 19, 2015
Sponsors: American Society of Mechanical Engineers
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNC12BA01B
WBS: WBS 694478.02.93.02.13.54.22
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
Keywords
wakes
vortex induced vibration
vortex induced vibration
noise reduction
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