The smoke visualization technique is an extremely insightful technique to qualitatively understand complex flow fields, particularly in a wind tunnel environment. This work focuses on the design, deve..
The smoke visualization technique is an extremely insightful technique to qualitatively understand complex flow fields, particularly in a wind tunnel environment. This work focuses on the design, development and testing of a smoke visualization system for the newly commissioned MicaPlex low-speed wind tunnel facility. The proposed design uses a smoke rake system in conjunction with existing smoke/fog generators. Smoke generated in a pressurized plenum was fed through a PVC strut housing the smoke rake. Prototypes of this design were fabricated using a fast-prototyping 3D printer. This allowed for rapid iterations in the initial design phase. Both a single-tube and multi-tube system were utilized to deliver atomized oil fog into the test section in a very controlled manner. As a demonstration of the system the flow over an airfoil section was visualized. The project is in the final phases of testing. This work incorporates aspects of engineering design, construction, as well as testing and its various iterations so providing exposure to an entire engineering product life cycle.
