WIND TUNNELS

The Aerodynamic Laboratories and the Walter H. Beech Wind Tunnel provide private industry, government agencies and educational institutions with the facilities, equipment and research staff to meet their needs involving projects in aerodynamic testing and research. Click on the links below to explore NIAR's wind tunnels.

| Walter H. Beech Wind Tunnel | Low-speed 3 x 4 foot tunnel |
| Supersonic 9 x 9 inch tunnel | Supersonic 4 x 4 inch tunnel |

Walter H. Beech Wind Tunnel

FACILITIES

The Walter H. Beech Memorial Wind Tunnel is an atmospheric, return type, closed-throat, subsonic wind tunnel with a test section seven feet high, 10 feet wide and 12 foot long. Air speeds in the test section can reach in excess of 200 mph.

A dual circuit, closed loop, liquid-filled heat exchanger is used to limit temperature rise in the tunnel and permits full speed operation all day long, seven days a week.

Flow conditioning elements including a precise honeycomb structure and spring-tensioned screen installed in the stilling chamber straighten and smooth out the airflow in the test section.

The test section has a large amount of glass-paned optical access for virtually all flow visualization techniques and positions. It can be disassembled for ease of model installation. The test section has been designed for a future capability of measuring wall pressure signatures.

An underfloor external balance is available for use. This six-component, truncated prism, pyramidal balance is extremely accurate, and precise and has a large measurement capability for forces and moments. In addition, it can quickly position models in both pitch and yaw axis over a large motion range.

SPECIFICATIONS

Test Section: 7’ H x 10’ W x 12’ L
Contraction Ratio: 6 to 1
Main Fan Unit Dimension: 13’ Diameter, 18 Blades
Main Fan Power Rating: 2,500 HP (1864 kW)

Test Section
Test Speeds (mph): < 40 to 240 mph
Test Speeds (q psf): < 2 to 125 psf
Test Speeds (Re/ft): < 250k/ft to 1.8M/ft
Max Test Temperature: <110 deg F

External Balance Load Range
Lift: ± 2,000 lbs.
Drag: ± 800 lbs.
Side Force: ± 2,000 lbs.
Rolling Moment: ± 4,200 ft-lbs.
Pitching Moment: ± 840 ft-lbs.
Yawing Moment: ± 820 ft-lbs.

Motion
Yaw Motion: +210/-150 deg @ 2 deg/s
Pitch Motion: +45/-45 deg @ 2 deg/s

OTHER CAPABILITIES

Internal Balances:
Update coming soon!

Compressed Air System:
The system includes two storage tanks (800 cubic feet of volume) with a maximum stagnation pressure of 250 psi. The maximum continuous mass flow is available at 50 psi for over 30 minutes.

Pressure Systems Incorporated 8400 System:
Over 224 pressure channels of 2.5 psid data are available for collection. In addition, several 10-inch H20 channels are available for lower pressure measurements. Several types of probes and rakes are available for measuring pressures on or behind a model, including two 1/8 inch-diameter Aeroprobe 7-hole probes.

Data Acquisition:
The HP 3852 data acquisition system can accept up to 30 cards of signal conditioning. There are currently 80 channels of signal conditioning available. Client-specific instrumentation can be connected to the signal conditioning.

Smoke Flow Visualization:
An Aerotech ATE. Ltd. Smoke Generator System is available for smoke flow visualization. The small probe design and long handle permit the client to position the probe in almost any area of interest in the test section.

Other Flow Visualization:
Micro tufts, yarn tufts, mini tufts, tempera paint and oil, and florescent oil are available to visualize flow in the tunnel.

Flow Field Surveys:
Several hot-wire and hot-film probes, as well as a multi-probe wake rake, are available for flow field surveys.

Photography (Still and Video):
A high-resolution digital camera and several video cameras are available for multiple angles of viewing, including one Canon GL-1 Digital Video Camera and one Canon GL-2 Digital Video Camera. Standard video capture is done with a VHS recorder. An analog titler is available to place text on the screen. Adobe Premiere is available for digital movie capture.

WSU College of Engineering 3 x 4 Wind Tunnel

The three- by four-foot wind tunnel was designed and built by faculty and students and completed in 1985 and was constructed from steel, fiberglass and wood. This facility can achieve velocities up to 100 feet per second, and is powered by a 200 hp electric motor that drives a four-bladed, 11-foot diameter propeller. It is an open-return wind tunnel with dual test sections: V/STOL (30 mph) seven- by 10-foot test section and a medium speed (200 mph) three- by four-foot test section. An online micro-computer is used for data acquisition and processing. Data can be obtained from a six-component sting balance, two-component laser velocimetry system, hot film anemometers, two 32-channel electronic pressure Scanivalve units (one 1.0 psid and one 2.5 psid), and other numerous flow measuring instruments.

Surface flow visualization is performed using oil, mini-tufts, liquid crystals or sublimating chemicals.

WSU College of Engineering 9 x 9 inch Supersonic Wind Tunnel

The nine-inch square supersonic wind tunnel was donated to the university in the 1960s. It is used to simulate wind speeds from near transonic (Mach 0.9 to 1.3) to supersonic (Mach 2, 3 and 4). The facility is a pressure-driven tunnel and uses a 100-hp pump to pressurize two 400 cubic-foot pressure tanks. Forty minutes must be allowed to prepare the tanks for a run while the actual run time is 30 seconds. This supersonic wind tunnel is equipped with pressure instrumentation and Schlieren visualization.

WSU College of Engineering 4 x 4 inch Supersonic Wind Tunnel

The four-inch square supersonic wind tunnel was designed and built by faculty and students in 1956. It can achieve Mach numbers of 2.2 or 1670 mph with a run time of 20 seconds. It operates by vacuum induction and uses a 15- hp pump to evacuate a 1700 cubic-foot vacuum tank that takes approximately 45 minutes to prepare for tunnel operation. Instrumentation includes Schlieren visualization, laser interferometry and pressure measurements.