03/02/17
Wind tunnels are used by engineers to test the aerodynamics of many objects, from jet wings to car windshields. Aerodynamics as a science studies the flow of air or gases around an object in motion. With a better understanding of the way air moves around (or through) objects, manufacturers can devise and create faster, safer, more reliable and more efficient products of all kinds.
Wind tunnels are simply hollow tubes; at one end, they have powerful fans that create a flow of air inside the tunnel. Some tunnels are desktop-sized and good for testing only very small objects. Other tunnels are massive structures in which engineers test full-size aircraft and cars. Although the test materials (usually) remain stationary, rapid airflow inside the tunnel makes it seem as though objects are moving.
Typically, there are sensors and instruments inside wind tunnels that give scientists hard data regarding an object's interaction with wind. And often, there are windows that let those same scientists observe experiments visually. With those data and observations, engineers grapple with variables of aerodynamics such as pressure, velocity, temperature and density. They gauge lift, drag, shockwaves and other conditions that affect planes and other contraptions that speed through the wind. In addition, these tunnels can help engineers figure out how wind interacts with stationary objects, such as buildings and bridges, and find ways to make them stronger and safer.
Measuring airflow is tricky as air is invisible, so how do you see whether a plane is performing well or badly inside the tunnel? There are three main ways. You can use a smoke gun to color the airstream white, then watch how the smoke shifts and swirls as it passes the plane. You can take what's called a Schlieren photograph, which makes variations in the air speed and pressure show up so you can see them. Or you can use anemometers (air-speed measuring instruments) to measure how fast the wind is going at different points around the plane. Armed with your measurements and lots of complex aerodynamic formulas, you can figure out how good or bad your plane is and whether it would really stay up in the sky.
Wind tunnels are used by engineers to test the aerodynamics of many objects, from jet wings to car windshields. Aerodynamics as a science studies the flow of air or gases around an object in motion. With a better understanding of the way air moves around (or through) objects, manufacturers can devise and create faster, safer, more reliable and more efficient products of all kinds.
Wind tunnels are simply hollow tubes; at one end, they have powerful fans that create a flow of air inside the tunnel. Some tunnels are desktop-sized and good for testing only very small objects. Other tunnels are massive structures in which engineers test full-size aircraft and cars. Although the test materials (usually) remain stationary, rapid airflow inside the tunnel makes it seem as though objects are moving.
Typically, there are sensors and instruments inside wind tunnels that give scientists hard data regarding an object's interaction with wind. And often, there are windows that let those same scientists observe experiments visually. With those data and observations, engineers grapple with variables of aerodynamics such as pressure, velocity, temperature and density. They gauge lift, drag, shockwaves and other conditions that affect planes and other contraptions that speed through the wind. In addition, these tunnels can help engineers figure out how wind interacts with stationary objects, such as buildings and bridges, and find ways to make them stronger and safer.
Measuring airflow is tricky as air is invisible, so how do you see whether a plane is performing well or badly inside the tunnel? There are three main ways. You can use a smoke gun to color the airstream white, then watch how the smoke shifts and swirls as it passes the plane. You can take what's called a Schlieren photograph, which makes variations in the air speed and pressure show up so you can see them. Or you can use anemometers (air-speed measuring instruments) to measure how fast the wind is going at different points around the plane. Armed with your measurements and lots of complex aerodynamic formulas, you can figure out how good or bad your plane is and whether it would really stay up in the sky.
Hi Sayish,
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you're making really good progress on making the wind tunnel model so far! Do you have any idea how big the actual tunnel will be? Also, do you know what kind of objects you will be testing in it?
Ya, the wind tunnel will be about 5 feet long and I will be testing small objects like model planes, cars, and the wings of small model planes mostly. The possibilities are actually endless on what I can test like bridge structures or any aerodynamic structure.
DeleteHey Sayish,
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned using wind tunnels to test air flow around small objects (i.e. desktop sized), what would the purpose of this be. Also, is there some wind tunnel to object size ratio that they must follow to be effective.
The purpose is to see if the wind tunnel works and it is gonna be used as a display to teach people who visit the center on what a wind tunnel is. They can put test objects in the wind tunnel and see how it works and understand how the wind's effects change based on what you are testing. It's more of a learning experience for the visitors. There is no such ratio, but its like if you are testing an actual wing of huge plane like the Boeing 777 then you should probably use a pretty big wind tunnel. The smaller wind tunnels are mostly used to check if this kind of structure would work then they build a bigger structure and test it again.
DeleteWhile I had a decent grasp on what a wind tunnel is and a few applications one, but I now have a more complete understanding of the object after reading this post. As practical as it is, I think it is pretty awesome how a wind tunnel is able to simulate various wind speeds to test the limitations of an object and whether or not an object can withstand certain conditions.
ReplyDelete