Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1994. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 51-56). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (M.S. in Mechanical Engineering)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2004. / Thesis advisor(s): Knox Millsaps. Includes bibliographical references (p. 69-72). Also available online.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Lehigh University, 1996. / Includes vita. Bibliography: leaves 155-158.

Approved for public release, distribution unlimited / This thesis presents a Computation Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis of the aerodynamic performance of circular and elliptical leading edges of compressor blades, with a range of leading-edge droop angles. Specifically, simulations were conducted, with a free stream Mach number of 0.65 to quantify the change in pressure distributions and boundary layer momentum thickness in the leading edge region for a range of incidences on a flat plate with various leading-edge ellipticity ratios, ranging from unity (circular) to 5.5. In addition, the impact of drooping the leading edge was analyzed over a range of incidence angles from zero to 13 degrees. Pressure distributions indicate that elliptical leading edges can eliminate separation bubbles at zero incidence. The results indicated that the minimum loss occurred at an ellipticity ratio of about 3 and elliptical leading edges with a droop slightly greater than the average incidence can significantly decreased aerodynamic losses over a wider range of incidences.

Thesis (M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering)--Naval Postgraduate School, September 1990. / Thesis Advisor(s): Ekaterinaris, John A. ; Platzer, Max. "September 1990." Description based on title screen as viewed on December 21, 2009. DTIC Identifier(s): Dynamics, leading edges, airfoils, dynamic stall, oscillating airfoil, pitching airfoil, leading edge geometry, pressure gradient, theses. Author(s) subject terms: Dynamic stall, oscillating airfoil, pitching airfoil, leading edge geometry, pressure gradient. Includes bibliographical references (p. 111-112). Also available in print.

Thesis (M.S. in Mechanical Engineering)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2005. / Thesis Advisor(s): Knox T. Millsaps. Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-74). Also available online.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) investigation is presented that provides predictions of the aerodynamic impact of uniform and non-uniform coatings applied to the leading edge of a compressor airfoil in a cascade. Using a NACA 65(12)10 airfoil, coating profiles of varying leading edge non-uniformity were added. This non-uniformity is typical of that expected due to fluid being drawn away from the leading edge during the coating process. The CFD code, RVCQ3D, is a steady, quasi-three-dimensional Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) solver. A k-omega turbulence model was used for the Reynolds' Stress closure. The code predicted that these changes in leading edge shape can lead to alternating pressure gradients in the first few percent of chord that create small separation bubbles and possibly early transition to turbulence. The change in total pressure loss and trailing edge deviation are presented as a function of the coating non-uniformity parameter. Results are presented for six leading edge profiles over a range of incidences and inlet Mach numbers from 0.6 to 0.8. Reynolds number was 600,000 and free-stream turbulence was 6%. A two-dimensional map is provided that shows the allowable degree of coating non-uniformity as a function of incidence and inlet Mach number. / Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy

The receptivity process by which two-dimensional, time-harmonic freestream disturbances generate instability waves in the incompressible Blasius boundary layer is investigated analytically. The importance of the leading edge region and the linear nature of the receptivity process are discussed, and Goldstein's (1983a, 1983b) theoretical framework for the leading edge receptivity problem is reviewed. His approach utilizes asymptotic matching of a region close to the leading edge, which is governed by the linearized unsteady boundary layer equation, with a region further downstream, which is described by an Orr-Sommerfeld type equation. The linearized unsteady boundary layer equation is solved numerically, using the slip velocity and pressure gradient obtained from the inviscid interaction of the freestream disturbance with the semi-infinite plate. A new method is developed to extract the receptivity coefficient from this numerical solution. The receptivity coefficient determines the amplitude of the instability wave--a quantity not available from classical stability theory. The freestream disturbances investigated are oblique plane acoustic waves, vortical gusts of various orientations convected downstream with freestream speed U(∞), and a Karman vortex street passing above the plate surface with speed U(p). In addition, the case of a semi-infinite plate in a channel of finite width subject to an upstream traveling acoustic wave on the upper plate surface is considered. For oblique acoustic waves, the dominant receptivity mechanism is related to scattering of the waves by the leading edge. In contrast, for vortical gusts the receptivity produced by leading edge scattering is very small. The boundary layer receptivity to a Karman vortex street is found to be a strong function of the speed ratio U(p)/U(∞). A pronounced influence of channel walls, which is related to the alternate cut-on of higher modes in the upstream and downstream channel halves, is found. A comparison of the present results with available experiments shows good qualitative and quantitative agreement.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2005. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xiv, 86 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-76).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Ocean Engineering, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Bibliography: leaves 144-148. / by David Scott Greeley. / Ph.D.