Wind Tunnels Lab

Directed by: Dr. Collin Britcher & Dr. Drew Landman

The Wind Tunnel Laboratory houses three different wind tunnels. The most commonly used one being the Closed-Circuit Low-Speed Wind Tunnel. There is also an Open-Circuit Low-Speed Tunnel with 6" Test Section. Finally, the laboratory houses a Supersonic Wind Tunnel. This page concentrates on the Closed-Circuit Low-Speed Wind Tunnel.

(Supplied by AeroLab LLC, Laural, MD c. 1971)

Used for undergraduate and graduate instruction and research in;

  • Aerodynamic, aeronautical, automotive, and architectural fields

  • Measurement techniques

  • 125 H.P. motor (variable frequency AC Drive)

  • Computer Control and Data Acquisition

  • 3 by 4 feet, 8 feet long, 55 m/s (123 mph)

  • Turntable and pitch mechanism (2DOF)

  • 7 by 8 feet, 7 feet long, 12 m/s (26 mph)

  • Computer-controlled 3-axis traverse

  • Ship airwake/rotor interaction study (S. Doane)

  • Road vehicle ground wake study (J. Chen)

  • Transport aircraft wake study(B. Sahin, H. Yavas)

  • MagLev Vehicle aerodynamics (M. Wells, B.Renaud)

  • MAE 621, MAE 406, MAE 407 classes (Instrumentation)

Pressure System:

Closed-Circuit Low-Speed Wind-Tunnel Diagram

  • 80-channel high-speed pressure scanners.

Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV)

  • Evaluates velocity of microscopic smoke particles in a plane illuminated by a pulsed laser light sheet

  • 2-3 velocity components, 1-875-3.5 fps

Hot Wire Anemometer (HWA)

  • Infers velocity from cooling of very fine heated wires placed in flow

  • 1-,2-, 3-components, frequency response >50khz

Contact

Interested in using the Wind Tunnels Laboratory? Contact Dr. Colin Britcher or Dr. Drew Landman for additional information.