NASA NIFS – Internship Final Report

Simscape Modeling of a Custom Closed-Volume Tank

Nathaniel P. Fischer
Kennedy Space Center
Major: Mechanical Engineering
KSC Spring Session
Date: 1 April 2015

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 NASA NIFS – Internship Final Report

Simscape Modeling of a Custom Closed-Volume Tank

Nathaniel P. Fischer
University of Wisconsin-Platteville, Platteville, WI, 53818

The library for Mathworks® Simscape™ does not currently contain a model for a closed-
volume fluid tank where the ullage pressure is variable. In order to model a closed-volume
variable ullage pressure tank, it was necessary to consider at least two separate cases: a
vertical cylinder, and a sphere. Using library components, it was possible to construct a rough
model for the cylindrical tank. It was not possible to construct a model for a spherical tank,
using library components, due to the variable area. It was decided that, for these cases, it
would be preferable to create a custom library component to represent each case, using the
Simscape language. Once completed, the components were added to models, where filling and
draining the tanks could be simulated. When the models were performing as expected, it was
necessary to generate code from the models and run them in Trick (a real-time simulation
program). The data output from Trick was then compared to the output from Simscape and
found to be within acceptable limits.

Nomenclature
P = pressure
k = specific heat ratio of gas
r = tank radius
d = diameter
A = area
P0 = initial pressure
m = mass
cp = constant pressure specific heat
V0 = initial volume of fluid
Vf = volume of fluid at time t
Vt = volume of tank
As = surface area
dt = time step
U = fluid density
h0 = initial fluid height
hf = height of fluid at time t
ht = height of tank
dVf/dt = fluid flow rate
T0 = initial temperature
T = temperature
Q = heat flow
KSC = Kennedy Space Center
NASA = National Aeronautic and Space Administration
Simscape = MathWorks® Simscape™
CSV = Comma-Separated Value

Simulation Intern, NE-C1, Kennedy Space Center, University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

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 NASA NIFS – Internship Final Report

I. Introduction

athWorks® Simscape™ (Simscape), is modeling and simulation software that can be used to represent a variety
M of physical systems. The National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) is investigating further use of
Simscape by the Application & Simulation Software Engineering Branch, NE-C1, at Kennedy Space Center (KSC).
Simscape models must be proven to be capable of running in real-time, using Trick (a real-time simulation program),
and with an acceptable level of accuracy. I have been tasked with creating a functional model of a fluid tank, where
the gas pressure inside of the tank will increase or decrease with a corresponding change in liquid volume. There are
two major tank geometries that will be considered for this model: a vertical cylinder, and a sphere.

II. Simscape Components and Models

A. Requirements
1. The component should have one liquid inlet/outlet, located at the bottom.
2. The tank pressure should vary with changes in the liquid volume.
3. The component should account for heat transfer between the tank and the liquid in the tank.
4. The component will be considered to be well insulated, so the heat transfer effects with the environment will
be assumed to be negligible.

B. Rough Model
In order to have a basis for
comparison, I constructed a model
that is representative of a
cylindrical tank, using Simscape
library components. It uses a
hydraulic cylinder that is physically
connected to a pneumatic cylinder
through the piston rods of the
cylinders. When using this model, if
the dimensions of the tank need to
be changed, the changes have to be
incorporated into both cylinders,
this is more time consuming and
could introduce the possibility for
errors. Additionally, the thermal
port on the pneumatic cylinder is
meant to interact with the gas, and I
am more interested in the heat Figure 1. Image of rough Simscape model.
transfer between the liquid and the
tank.

C. Custom Cylindrical Tank Component

Using the Simscape language, it is possible to modify some library components, or, to
create complete custom components. In order to satisfy the requirements for the fluid tank,
I decided to start from the beginning. To simplify the equations, I made certain reasonable
assumptions: The gas in the tank is assumed to be an ideal gas, temperature change of the
gas due to volume change (compression or expansion), is considered to be negligible, heat
transfer between the gas and liquid is considered to be negligible, the tank is considered to
be well insulated, change of tank volume due to pressure change is not considered. The
port labels for the component require some clarification. H is the hydraulic port, where Figure 2. Image of custom
the fluid flows into or out of the tank. A is a physical signal port that outputs the contact Simscape cylindrical tank
surface area between the tank and the fluid, it is used with the custom heat transfer component.

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 NASA NIFS – Internship Final Report

components during simulation. V is a physical signal port that outputs the fluid volume. T is a thermal port that is
used to model the heat transfer, between the tank and the fluid in the tank. P is a physical signal port that outputs the
pressure in the tank. M is a physical signal port that outputs the fluid mass, and it is used with the custom thermal
mass component to model heat transfer. Temp is a physical signal port that outputs the fluid temperature.

D. Cylindrical Tank Equations

The following equations were used to create the cylindrical tank component.

‫ ܣ‬ൌ ߨ‫ ݎ‬ଶ (1)

ܸ௧ǡ௙ǡ଴ ൌ ‫݄ܣ‬௧ǡ௙ǡ଴ (2)

†ܸ௙ †݄௙
ൌ‫ܣ‬
†‫ݐ‬ †‫ݐ‬
(3)
௞
ܸ௧ െܸ଴
ܲ ൌ ܲ଴ ቆ ቇ
ܸ௧ െ ܸ௙
(4)
݉ ൌ ߩܸ௙ (5)
‫ܣ‬௦ ൌ ‫ ܣ‬൅ ߨ݄݀௙ (6)
ܳ ൌ ݉ܿ௣ ሺܶ െ ܶ଴ ሻ (7)

E. Testing Custom Tank Models

In order to verify the functionality of
the custom tank components, they were
added to a model, where the interaction
with other components could be tested
and verified. In the model, the “Variable
Head Tank” supplies the fluid, and the
“Hydraulic Constant Pressure Source”
provides the pressure to initiate flow.
Heat transfer in the tank component is
modeled through the thermal port “T”, the
thermal mass associated with the fluid in
the tank is represented by “Thermal
Mass”, and the thermal mass of the tank is
represented by “Tank Mass”. The heat
transfer between the tank and the fluid is
represented by the “Convective Heat
Transfer” and “Conductive Heat
Transfer” components.
Figure 3. Image of custom cylindrical tank model (spherical model similar).

F. Custom Spherical Tank Component

The assumptions for the spherical tank are the same as the assumptions listed for the
cylindrical tank. In order to represent the relationship between the area change and the
height change of the fluid, it was necessary to develop this component from the
beginning, using the Simscape language. The inputs and outputs for this tank are similar
to those found on the cylindrical tank, described in section (II.C).

Figure 4. Image of custom spherical

tank Simscape component.

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G. Spherical Tank Equations

The following equations were used to create the spherical tank component. The derivations for the volume and
area equations are in the Appendix.

‫ ܣ‬ൌ ߨ൫ʹ‫݄ݎ‬௙ െ ݄௙ ଶ ൯ (8)

Ͷ
ܸ௧ ൌ ߨ‫ ݎ‬ଷ
͵
(9)

͵‫ ݎ‬െ ݄଴
ܸ଴ ൌ ߨ݄଴ ଶ
͵
(10)1
௞
ܸ௧ െܸ଴
ܲ ൌ ܲ଴ ቆ ቇ
ܸ௧ െ ܸ௙
(11)
݉ ൌ ߩܸ௙ (12)
݄௙ ଷ ݄଴ ଷ
ܸ௙ ൌ ܸ଴ ൅ ߨሺ‫ݎ‬൫݄௙ ଶ െ ݄଴ ଶ ൯ െ ൅
͵ ͵
(13)2
ଶ
‫ܣ‬௦ ൌ Ͷߨ‫ ݎ‬െ ʹߨ‫ݎ‬൫ʹ‫ ݎ‬െ ݄௙ ൯ (14)

†ܸ௙ †݉
ൌ Ȁߩ
†‫ݐ‬ †‫ݐ‬
(15)
ܳ ൌ ݉ܿ௣ ሺܶ െ ܶ଴ ሻ (16)

H. Custom Library
After writing the code for the
components in Simscape language, it is
necessary to save them in a separate folder.
In order to be considered as a Simscape
library, this folder must begin with a “+”, so,
an example would be: +Folder_name, I
would suggest adding this directory to the
Matlab path. From the Matlab command
line, the command to compile and build the
components in the library folder is: ssc_build
Folder_name. If there are no errors in the
Simscape code files, the library should
resemble Fig. 3. The default image for a
custom Simscape component is a labeled box
with the corresponding inputs and outputs. If
a different image is desirable, it is relatively
simple to add. Save a copy of the image in
the “+Folder_name” directory. The file name
for the image has to match the file name of Figure 5. Image of custom component library.
the component, for example: for the
Simscape file, “custom_file.ssc” the image would need to be “custom_file.img”, where img is a supported file format
for the image. The supported image file formats are: jpg, bmp, and png 3.

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I. Additional Custom Components

When attempting to model the heat transfer between the fluid and the tank walls, I found that the standard library
components were missing some necessary functionality. In the “Thermal Mass” standard library component, the mass
is a fixed parameter that cannot easily be adjusted during simulation. For the tank components, the fluid mass is
changing continuously with fluid volume. In order to consider the change in mass, I modified the standard “Thermal
Mass” component to accept the value for mass as a physical signal input. Also, both tank components were modified
to output the fluid mass as a physical signal. A similar problem was encountered with the heat transfer library
components (Conductive Heat Transfer and Convective Heat Transfer), where the area is a fixed parameter. The
surface area of the liquid that contacts the tank changes continuously with fluid volume as well. A similar solution
was employed to account for the changing area, the heat transfer components were modified to accept the area as a
physical signal input, and the tank components were modified to output the area as a physical signal.

III. Verification of Models

A. Cylindrical Tank Comparison

The cylindrical tank component was incorporated into a model, similar to the model shown in Fig. 3. The
simulation was run, and the results were recorded. This procedure was repeated for the rough model, shown in Fig. 1.
Next, some of the results from the two simulations were plotted and compared, shown in Fig. 6 and 7.

Figure 6. Pressure as a function of time. Figure 7. Fluid flow rate as a function of time.

I then compared the two simulations, using the “Simulation Data Inspector” in Simscape, the results are shown in Fig.
8. The two runs match each other closely, the Tank Volume curves are within 0.09%, the Pressure curves are within
2.26%, and the Flow curves are within 1.78%.

B. Code Generation
After comparing the two models and finding the results to be satisfactory, the next step is to generate code from
the Simscape model, so it can be run in the Trick real-time simulation environment. The results from the Trick
simulation will then be compared to the results from the Simscape simulation, to determine if any variation exists
between the two simulations. Also, it is important that the model is “real-time capable”, meaning that the computations
performed during one second of simulation time must take less than one second of real-time to complete.
Certain configuration parameters in Simscape must be set before code generation can be done. I saved a copy of
the model onto the “KSC Template”, where the parameters were already set to the required values. I then ran the
simulation to verify that it would
compile and run with the new settings.
In the Simscape model, I replaced all
of the Scopes with output ports, and
used Pulse Generators to generate an
input signal. Using Matlab Coder, as a
test, I was able to successfully generate Figure 8. Comparison of simulation runs.
C++ code from the model. In order to

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generate all of the necessary files to run the simulation in Trick, a series of steps must be taken. First, I ran
sim_mc_buildScript with the appropriate command line arguments and file paths, from a terminal. If there were any
errors in the build, I addressed them, and repeated the command until the build was successful. Next, I created a
data_logging.txt file with input and output names that matched the model inputs and outputs, using the
Subsystem_Test_Bench Excel template. I then saved a copy of the data_logging.txt file into file_path/SIM/data. Next,
I included the data_logging.txt file in the header of file_path/SIM/RUN/input. I ran the sim_tcid_buildScript with the
appropriate command line arguments from a terminal, if any errors appeared, I addressed the errors and repeated until
the script ran successfully. I verified that an S_main_operatingsystem.exe file existed in the file_path/SIM directory.
To run the simulation in Trick, I changed directory to file_path/SIM. The next step was to run the
S_main_operatingsystem.exe file
with argument RUN/input. Using
Ctrl Z to stop the command, and
then typed “bg” (to move the
program to the background). I
opened the Trick simulation control
by typing: sim_control.tcl –m
machine host name –port number.
The Trick control panel opened
with the simulation paused. I ran the
simulation for a sufficient time to
gather the necessary data. Once the
simulation was complete, there was
a log_filename.trk file in the
file_path/SIM/RUN directory. I
converted this file to a comma-
separated value (CSV) file, using
the command trk2csv with the
appropriate arguments4. Next, I
imported the CSV data and
compared it to data that was saved
from a Simscape simulation, using Figure 9. Comparison of Simscape data and Trick data.
Matlab to plot the results.
As shown in Fig. 9, the data from the Trick simulation overlays the plot from the Simscape simulation exactly.
The results shown are from the cylindrical tank model, the results from the spherical tank model were similar when
the simulations were compared.

IV. Conclusion
When comparing the custom cylindrical tank to the one provided Simscape library components, the results are
promising. Unfortunately, I have no rough Simscape model to compare the custom spherical tank model against, to
verify the accuracy of the model, other than the equations that define the tank geometry, though the model performs
as expected. When the need arises, The use of the Simscape language to create custom components, or to extend
existing Simscape library components is straight forward, feasible and recommended.

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Appendix

Derivation of Spherical Tank equations:

‫ݎ‬ሺ݄ሻଶ ൌ ܴଶ െ ሺܴ െ ݄ሻଶ ,
Or
‫ݎ‬ሺ݄ሻଶ ൌ ʹܴ݄ െ ݄ଶ

Where r(h) is the radius of the fluid level at height h and R is the tank radius.

So, the volume would be:

ܸ ൌ ‫݄݀ܣ ׬‬,

Where ‫ ܣ‬ൌ ߨ ‫ݎ כ‬ሺ݄ሻଶ

௛ ௛బ
ܸ ൌ න ሺʹߨܴ݄ െ ߨ݄ଶ ሻ݄݀ ൅ න ሺʹߨܴ݄ െ ߨ݄ଶ ሻ݄݀
௛బ ଴

݄ଷ െ ݄଴ଷ ݄଴ଷ
ܸ ൌ ߨ ቊܴሺ݄ଶ െ ݄଴ଶ ሻ െ ൅ ܴ݄଴ଶ െ ቋ
͵ ͵

Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my mentor, Lien Moore, for offering me this amazing, once in a lifetime opportunity. Also,
I would like to thank Adam Ayer, who was very helpful in getting me set up with accounts and initial training.
Additionally, Mike Waldorf was very helpful when I had issues with code generation and Trick questions. Last but
not least, I would like to thank my family for their support and encouragement. This entire experience has been
challenging in all of the right ways, and I feel as though I have learned so much in such a short time.

References

1
“Fluid Level in a Spherical Tank,” URL: http://spacemath.gsfc.nasa.gov/Calculus/5Page45.pdf [cited 2 April 2015].
2
“Fluid Level in a Spherical Tank,” URL: http://spacemath.gsfc.nasa.gov/Calculus/5Page45.pdf [cited 2 April 2015].
3
“Build custom library from collection of Simscape files,” URL:
http://www.mathworks.com/help/physmod/simscape/ref/ssc_build.html [cited 2 April 2015].
4
“Trick User’s Guide”, November 1, 2009.

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