The near wake of discrete roughness elements on swept wings

This work presents the first experimental characterization of the flow field in the vicinity of periodically spaced discrete roughness elements (DRE) in a swept wing boundary layer. The time-averaged velocity fields are acquired in a volumetric domain by high-resolution dual-pulse tomographic particle tracking velocimetry. Investigation of...

Receptivity of crossflow instability to discrete roughness amplitude and location

The effect of discrete roughness elements on the development and breakdown of stationary crossflow instability on a swept wing is explored. Receptivity to various element heights and chordwise locations is explored using a combination of experimental and theoretical tools. Forcing configurations, determined based on linear stability...

Boundary layer state detection using piezoelectric sensors

Two piezoelectric series bimorph sensors were embedded below the skin of a NACA 0012 symmetrical airfoil to detect the local state of the boundary layer during wind tunnel testing. Small vanes piercing the airfoil skin were glued onto the bimorphs providing a mechanical coupling to the local mechanical force fluctuations imparted by the local...

Direct numerical simulation of interaction between a stationary crossflow instability and forward-facing steps

The interaction between forward-facing steps of several heights and a pre-existing critical stationary crossflow instability of a swept-wing boundary layer is analysed. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) are performed of the incompressible three-dimensional laminar base flow and the stationary distorted flow that arise from the interaction...

Unsteady interaction of crossflow instability with a forward-facing step

Experiments have been conducted on a swept wing model in a low-turbulence wind tunnel at chord Reynolds number of to investigate the unsteady interaction of a forward-facing step (FFS) with incoming stationary crossflow (CF) vortices. The impact of varying the FFS height on the development and growth of primary and secondary CF disturbances...

Impact of a forward-facing step on the development of crossflow instability

The impact of a forward-facing step (FFS) on the development of stationary crossflow instability is investigated on a swept wing model in a low-turbulence wind tunnel at chord Reynolds number of. Infrared thermography and particle image velocimetry measurements are used to quantify the transition location and growth of the crossflow...

Transition in a separation bubble under tonal and broadband acoustic excitation

Transition and flow development in a separation bubble formed on an airfoil are studied experimentally. The effects of tonal and broadband acoustic excitation are considered since such acoustic emissions commonly result from airfoil self-noise and can influence flow development via a feedback loop. This interdependence is decoupled, and the...

Conditioning of unsteady cross-flow instability modes using dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators

In this study, experiments are performed towards the identification and measurement of unsteady modes occurring in a transitional swept wing boundary layer. These modes are generated by the interaction between the primary stationary and travelling cross-flow instabilities or by secondary instability mechanisms of the stationary cross-flow...

Effect of Local DBD Plasma Actuation on Transition in a Laminar Separation Bubble

This work examines the effect of local active flow control on stability and transition in a laminar separation bubble. Experiments are performed in a wind tunnel facility on a NACA 0012 airfoil at a chord Reynolds number of 130 000 and an angle of attack of 2 degrees. Controlled disturbances are introduced upstream of a laminar separation...

Flow visualization of swept wing boundary layer transition

In this work the flow visualization of the transition pattern occurring on a swept wing in a subsonic flow is presented. This is done by means of fluorescent oil flow technique and boundary layer hot-wire scans. The experiment was performed at Reynolds number of 2:15 . 106 and at angle of attack of -3º. At these conditions, three different flows...

Plasmas for Transition Delay

This paper describes the experimental investigation of the properties of Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) actuators aimed at transition delay techniques. A wide range of geometrical configurations are tested as well as several electrical operational conditions. For the majority of the measurements statistical data for the induced flow field...