"Enhancing the experimental capabilities for unsteady aerodynamics research"

Speaker: Keisuke Asai, Tohoku University, Japan

Recent activities on Tohoku University's advanced experimental techniques are overviewed with particular emphasis on applications of image-based flow diagnostic techniques to unsteady flow. New types of pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) for unsteady pressure-field measurement have been developed and applied to experiments such as transonic wing buffeting, unsteady flow on an oscillating airfoil and vortex-shedding behind a square cylinder. Skin-friction measurement techniques based on optical flow detection have been also developed and its extension to unsteady flow is now ongoing. In addition to research on measurement techniques, recent developments of new dynamic wind-tunnel testing techniques such as the multiple degree-of-freedom robotic manipulator (HEXA) and the Magnetic Suspension and Balance System (MSBS) are outlined. With these techniques, it is possible to simulate the model motion necessary for studying unsteady flow in a wide range of frequencies. From these recent research works, the future of experimental capabilities for unsteady aerodynamics and dynamic wind-tunnel testing is discussed.