Aerospace Laboratory - ENG107

Area: 1,357 ft²
Director: Brian Andrade
Courses Served: AE160, AE162, AE164, AE168, AE262, AE264, AE266

Subsonics Aerodynamics

Purpose:
Provide students with experiments in basic flow measurements and visualization. These include pressure distributions on airfoils, lift and drag measurements of wings and other aerodynamics bodies, boundary-layer measurements, as well as longitudinal and directional stability characteristics of airplanes. Flow visualization includes study of high-angle-of-attack flow patterns around airfoils, conical bodies and delta wing aircraft.

Existing Stations & Major Equipment

AEROLAB, LLC: Educational Wind Tunnel System

Performance Specifications:
Airspeed Range: 10 mph (4.5 m/s) to 145+ mph (65 + m/s)
Turbulence Level: less than 0.2%
Reynolds Number (per foot): 1.4 x 106 /foot

Components:
• Data Acquisition System(DAS), Display and Control System (DAC)
• National Instruments hardware and LabView software
• Capable of monitoring: force/moment balance output, pressures, model angle of attack
• Dell desktop computer
• 3-component force / moment sting balance
• Drag model set: teardrop, backward cup, forward cup, circular flat plate, and sphere
• Pressure cylinder
• Clark Y-14 airfoil
• Pressure wing
• Wake rake
• Wing with adjustable slat and flaps
• 1:48 scale F-16 model
• Pitot-static probe
• Yaw probe
• Boundary layer flat plate and 10-tap total pressure probe
• Turbulence sphere
• Multi-column manometer
• Pressure transducer array

Standard Operating Procedure

Subsonic Wind Tunnel Experiments

AE160 – Aerodynamics I
1. Study of aerodynamic drag as a function of shape (teardrop, backward cup, forward cup, circular flat plate, sphere, etc.) and Reynolds number.
2. Study of airfoil drag as a function of angle-of-attack and Reynolds number using wake traverses (momentum theorem).
3. Boundary layer study on a flat plate: laminar vs. turbulent boundary layer, boundary layer transition, boundary layer thickness, boundary layer velocity profiles.

AE162 – Aerodynamics II
4. Study of the pressure distribution on a circular cylinder.
5. Study of the pressure distribution on an airfoil as a function of angle-of-attack and Reynolds number. Calculation of airfoil lift by integrating the surface pressure distribution.
6. Study of airfoil lift and drag as a function of angle-of-attack and Reynolds number using direct measurements (force balance system).
7. Study of airfoil aerodynamic characteristics with high lift devices (leading edge slats and split flaps).
AE168 – Aerospace Vehicle Dynamics & Control
8. Study of the static longitudinal and directional stability characteristics of an F-16 model.

Rolling Hills Research Corporation
Water Tunnel Model 0710

Performance Specifications:
Size: L=112in, W=46in, H=47in
Capacity: 105 gallons
Test Section: W=7in, H=10in, L=18in Down Stream Window: 7in x 9.5in
Flow Velocity: 2 to 5 in./sec.
Turbulence Intensity: <0.5% RMS

Components:
Centrifugal pump: 1.5hp 115VAC 60Hz 16A (stainless steel)
Dye injection system (pressurized, 3-color)
Control panel
Models: 2D airfoil, conical body, delta-wing aircraft

Water Tunnel Experiments

AE160 – Aerodynamics I
 
1. Flow visualization studies on airfoil, conical body, and delta wing aircraft. Attached / separated flow, steady / unsteady flow, 2-D / 3-D flow, observation of vortex formation and bursting.

Supersonics Aerodynamics

Purpose:
Provide students with experiments in supersonic flow and familiarity with instrumentation and data acquisition software (LabVIEW), schlieren / shadowgraph techniques for shock and expansion waves visualization, nozzle flow characterization, intrusive pressure and temperature measurements for free-stream flow characterization, measurement of aerodynamic forces acting on bodies submerged in supersonic flows and comparison with theoretical models.

Supersonic Wind Tunnel Facility
(Under Development)

Performance Specifications:
Free-jet and closed test section modes.
Operation at different Mach numbers by exchanging nozzle sections.
Mach Number range (free-jet mode): from 2 to 3.
Mach Number range (closed test section mode): from 2 to 4.
Reynolds Number per unit length range (free-jet mode):
3.1×107/foot to 8.9×107/foot.

Components
• Air compressor.
• Two high-pressure air receivers (max operating pressure: 550psi).
• Control Valve for steady state operation of the facility.
• Pressure transducers for the measurement of tank, plenum and test section pressure.
• Thermocouples for the measurement of plenum and in-stream temperatures.
• Pressure scanner for the simultaneous measurement of the pressure along the length of the nozzle or from the in-stream rake.
• National Instruments Data Acquisition System and LabView software for the operation of the wind tunnel control valve and for monitoring pressures and temperatures.
• Z-type schlieren system for the visualization of shock and expansion waves and local Mach number evaluation.
• Rake for pressure and temperature probes.
• Wind tunnel models: wedges, cones, diamond-shaped airfoils.

Standard Operating Procedure

Supersonic Wind Tunnel Experiments

AE 164 – Aerothermodynamics
1. Visualize the flow around sharp and blunt bodies using a Schlieren system.
CLO-1: Compare the shock wave pattern on sharp wedges with the solution of the oblique shock wave equation.
CLO-2: Compare the shock wave around cones at zero angle of attack with the Taylor-Maccoll solution.
CLO-3: Visualize the formation of the shock around blunt bodies and understand the complexity of the flow downstream of the bow shock.

2. Characterize a nozzle flow at different exit Mach numbers in the free-jet configuration using the Schlieren system and the pressure scanner.
CLO-1: Observe and quantify the underexpanded, perfectly expanded and overexpanded nozzle states.
CLO-2: Observe expansion and shock wave patterns in the three cases. CLO-3: Estimate the local Mach number through analysis of Schlieren data images.

3. Design, build and validate of supersonic in-stream pressure and temperature probes through flow characterization.
CLO-1: Describe and quantify the basic design constraints for supersonic flow probes (size, geometry, response time).
CLO-2: Understand the measurement lag due to the use of small-sized tubing and finite-size thermocouple wires.
CLO-3: Characterize the free-stream flow.

4. Evaluate the drag and lift coefficients on diamond-shaped airfoils submerged in supersonic flows and compare with available models.
CLO-1: Measure the static pressure on the surface of the models using a pressure scanner.
CLO-2: Compare experimental results with shock/expansion theory.