Accurately Validated High-Speed Wear Prediction Code

Successful rocket sled testing stretches the limits of known science in many areas including aerodynamics, thermal heating, impact dynamics and material structural integrity to name a few. As sled speeds and payload weights have increased over recent years, the margin of tolerable error in engineering judgment has been shrinking. Computational tools for predicting aerodynamics and structural responses to these test conditions have improved dramatically and have made rocket sled testing more reliable and successful. When monorail sleds travel at high speeds, slippers begin to wear down significantly which, in turn, allows them to assume asymmetric attitudes with respect to the general body motion. This results in rolling or lifting loads which may tear the sled off the track. The Test Track engineering team requires the ability to accurately predict slipper wear as a function of numerous variables including sled speed, run duration, slipper geometry, slipper material and other possible inputs. This Phase I effort will perform the necessary research to develop the foundation for a software tool that will reliably predict slipper wear during sled testing.