INDEX A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Department of Aerospace Engineering

Advanced Flow Diagnostics and Experimental Aerodynamics Laboratory

Areas of Interest:

1). Fundamental studies on challenging thermal-fluids problems:

  • Microfluidics, micro-flows and micro-scale heat transfer.
  • Icing physics, aircraft icing, power line icing and wind turbine icing.
  • Wind energy, wind turbine technology and wind turbine anti-icing/deicing.
  • Bio-inspired flows, bio-inspired designs for micro-air-vehicle (MAV) applications.
  • Low-speed aerodynamics, laminar boundary layer separation, transition and flow control.
  • Tornados, storms and flow-structure interactions of built structures in strong winds.
  • Vortex flow dynamics, wind tunnel testing and correction for vortex flows.
  • Film cooling, trailing edge cooling and thermal management of gas turbine blades

2). Advanced flow diagnostics and instrumentations:
  • Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Stereoscopic PIV techniques.
  • Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF) and Laser Induced Phosphorescence (LIP).
  • Pressure Sensitive Paint (PSP) and Temperature Sensitive Paint (TSP).
  • Molecular Tagging Velocimetry (MTV) and Molecular Tagging Thermometry (MTT).
  • Quantum Dot imaging and Molecule-based microscopic flow diagnostic techniques.

Research Projects:

A.  Ongoing funded research projects:

  • “Enhancing the Understanding of Extreme Winds Near Ground and Their Damaging Effects for Hazard Mitigation”,   National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); 09/1/2009 - 08/31/2010.
  • Theoretical & Experimental Development of Dynamic Roughness for Boundary Layer Control”, AFOSR – STTR phase II project (through PHYSICAL SCIENCES, INC);  08/16/2009 - 08/15/2011.
  • “Development of the Next Generation of Vortex Flow Meters for Engine Applications”, Grow Iowa Values Fund Program, State of Iowa; 01/01/2009 - 06/30/2010.
  • "On the Simulation of Free Flight Vortices in Ground Test Facilities”, Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR); 06/31/2008 - 12/31/2010.
  •  “IREE Supplement to NSF-CAREER project: “Establishment of an ISU-TOKYO Research and Education Integrated International Collaboration Partnership”; National Science Foundation (NSF); 01/01/2008 ~ 12/31/2011.
  • “CAREER: Development of a Novel Molecule-based Diagnostic technique to Study Joule Heating and Micro-scale Heat Transfer Process in Electrokinetically-driven Microfluidics”, National Science Foundation; 02/01/2006 ~ 01/31/2011.

B.  Completed  funded research projects:  

  • “A Study of Extreme Winds near Ground and Their Damaging Effects on the Built Environment”, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); 08/31/2008 - 09/01/2009.
  • ”Development of the Next Generation of Vortex Flow Meters for Engine Applications”; IPRT Company;  10/01/07 ~ 03/31/08.
  • ”Reducing Wind-Induced Damages from Storms”, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); 09/01/2006 ~ 08/31/ 2008.
  • “MRI: Acquisition of a High-Speed Particle Image Velocimetry System for Single- and Multi-Phase Fluid Dynamics Research”, National Science Foundation; 09/01/05 ~ 09/01/06

Funding Sources:

Major equipment available for advanced flow diagnostics:

  • A double-pulsed Nd:Yag laser system with 200mJ/pulse@532nm or 50mJ/pulse@266nm, (Gemini 200 -NewWave) for LIF, PIV, µ-PIV and stereoscopic PIV measurements.
  • A high-energy pulsed Nd:Yag laser with 400mJ/pulse@532nm, 100mJ/pulse @ 355nm or 90mJ/pulse@ 266nm (Surelite III-10- Continuum) for molecular tagging measurements.
  • Three high-resolution 12-bit CCD cameras (Sensicam QE and Pixelfly - Cooke Corp).
  • A two-component LDV system (Dantec) with translation mechanism.
  • A research-grade inverted epi-fluorescent microscope (Leica-DM-IL).
  • Digital delay generators with picoseconds-resolution (SRS-DG535, and BNC-565-8C).
  • Optical tables with various camera lens, optics, mirrors, filters, beam splitters and associated mounts.
  • Host computer/workstations for image acquisition and processing with image-processing software.
  • Various electronic devices such as high-voltage power supplies and oscilloscopes for digital signal analyzing and instrumentation.

Other major facilities available in the Lab:

  • A closed-circuit subsonic wind tunnel (1ft ×1ft section) with 180mph capacity.
  • An open-circuit subsonic wind tunnel (3.0 ft × 2.5 ft section) with 180 mph capability.
  • A close-loop water flume (12in × 6in section) with 0.5 m/s capacity.
  • A close-loop water tunnel (4in ×4in section) with overflow systems to maintain constant water head.
  • An experimental rig for the studies of molecular mixing in turbulent gaseous flow.
  • An experimental rig for the studies of wake aerodynamics of rotorcraft in maneuvering.
  • Various conventional wind tunnel testing equipment such as force balances, digital pressure transducers, and hot wires probes.