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Josiah A. Bryan
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
University of Missouri - Columbia
Advisor: Dr. Craig A. Kluever
Abstract
A software package was developed that numerically maximizes the range of an unpowered reusable launch vehicle during the Terminal Area Energy Management (TAEM) phase of reentry into Earth's atmosphere by adjusting the angle-of-attack control profile at preselected Mach numbers along its trajectory. The software returns the optimal trajectory in terms of angle-of-attack deviations from a maximum lift-to-drag trajectory, which is the traditional trajectory used to maximize range of an unpowered aerial vehicle. In order to test the optimization software, an aerodynamic model of the X-34 launch vehicle was developed to calculate lift and drag coefficients for a given angle of attack and Mach number. The merits of alternative control laws, such as constant-velocity or constant-dynamic-pressure algorithms, were also investigated in an attempt to find a control law that would not require the inherent computational costs associated with numerical optimization.
Josiah Bryan desires to graduate in May 2011 with an MS in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering from the University of Missouri. He is considering pursuing a job or returning in the fall to pursue a Ph.D. in the same field.
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