The purpose of this study is to optimize the flow quality inside the 30-inch x 40-inch subsonic wind tunnel. The tunnel is an open circuit with its inlet positioned adjacent to the side door of the lab; forcing the air to make a ninety degrees turn entering the tunnel. The flow suffered from two main deficiencies, high level of turbulence and slightly unsteady flow with a non-uniform velocity distribution across the test section. By utilizing a hot-film anemometer system and a total pressure rake, turbulence and velocity distribution data were obtained. Rounded corners and a turning vane were installed in front of the inlet to minimize boundary layer separation. Furthermore, a screen was attached to the inlet to help reduce the turbulence level. By combining all the configurations the flow reached a uniform distribution for more than ninety percent of the cross sectional area, with a maximum deviation of one percent from the mean center velocity. Turbulence was reduced from one percent to a half percent. This research could be followed by a more comprehensive effort to further improve the flow quality inside the test section, though it does not seem warranted at this time.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of this study is to optimize the flow quality inside the 30-inch x 40-inch subsonic wind tunnel. The tunnel is an open circuit with its inlet positioned adjacent to the side door of the lab; forcing the air to make a ninety degrees turn entering the tunnel. The flow suffered from two main deficiencies, high level of turbulence and slightly unsteady flow with a non-uniform velocity distribution across the test section. By utilizing a hot-film anemometer system and a total pressure rake, turbulence and velocity distribution data were obtained. Rounded corners and a turning vane were installed in front of the inlet to minimize boundary layer separation. Furthermore, a screen was attached to the inlet to help reduce the turbulence level. By combining all the configurations the flow reached a uniform distribution for more than ninety percent of the cross sectional area, with a maximum deviation of one percent from the mean center velocity. Turbulence was reduced from one percent to a half percent. This research could be followed by a more comprehensive effort to further improve the flow quality inside the test section, though it does not seem warranted at this time.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Elnenaey, Ahmed F."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering","degree_level":"Thesis - Open Access","degree_discipline":"Aerospace Engineering","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Charles N. Eastlake","L.L. Narayanaswami","Tej R. Gupta"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2001,"date_issued":"2001-04-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2001-04-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:25:23Z","subjects":["optimization","flow quality","wind tunnel","subsonic","Aerospace Engineering"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.erau.edu/db-theses/55","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Charles N. Eastlake","L.L. Narayanaswami","Tej R. Gupta"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Elnenaey, Ahmed F."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Aerospace Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - Open Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["optimization","flow quality","wind tunnel","subsonic","Aerospace Engineering"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.erau.edu/db-theses/55"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of this study is to optimize the flow quality inside the 30-inch x 40-inch subsonic wind tunnel. The tunnel is an open circuit with its inlet positioned adjacent to the side door of the lab; forcing the air to make a ninety degrees turn entering the tunnel. The flow suffered from two main deficiencies, high level of turbulence and slightly unsteady flow with a non-uniform velocity distribution across the test section. By utilizing a hot-film anemometer system and a total pressure rake, turbulence and velocity distribution data were obtained. Rounded corners and a turning vane were installed in front of the inlet to minimize boundary layer separation. Furthermore, a screen was attached to the inlet to help reduce the turbulence level. By combining all the configurations the flow reached a uniform distribution for more than ninety percent of the cross sectional area, with a maximum deviation of one percent from the mean center velocity. Turbulence was reduced from one percent to a half percent. This research could be followed by a more comprehensive effort to further improve the flow quality inside the test section, though it does not seem warranted at this time.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Optimization of Flow Quality In the Test Section of The 30-Inch x 40- Inch Subsonic Tunnel"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Charles N. Eastlake","L.L. Narayanaswami","Tej R. Gupta"],"dc:creator":["Elnenaey, Ahmed F."],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of this study is to optimize the flow quality inside the 30-inch x 40-inch subsonic wind tunnel. The tunnel is an open circuit with its inlet positioned adjacent to the side door of the lab; forcing the air to make a ninety degrees turn entering the tunnel. The flow suffered from two main deficiencies, high level of turbulence and slightly unsteady flow with a non-uniform velocity distribution across the test section. By utilizing a hot-film anemometer system and a total pressure rake, turbulence and velocity distribution data were obtained. Rounded corners and a turning vane were installed in front of the inlet to minimize boundary layer separation. Furthermore, a screen was attached to the inlet to help reduce the turbulence level. By combining all the configurations the flow reached a uniform distribution for more than ninety percent of the cross sectional area, with a maximum deviation of one percent from the mean center velocity. Turbulence was reduced from one percent to a half percent. This research could be followed by a more comprehensive effort to further improve the flow quality inside the test section, though it does not seem warranted at this time.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.erau.edu/db-theses/55"],"dc:subject":["optimization","flow quality","wind tunnel","subsonic","Aerospace Engineering"],"dc:title":["Optimization of Flow Quality In the Test Section of The 30-Inch x 40- Inch Subsonic Tunnel"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Aerospace Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis - Open Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:25:23Z"}