Design and Performance of the Acoustic Wind Tunnel at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center
Abstract
The Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Division Newport recently designed, built and commissioned a low-noise, low-turbulence acoustic wind tunnel for aerodynamic and aeroacoustic testing. Special features include an upstream centrifugal ventilation fan, integrated sting mounting system, unique downstream flow collector, low-speed return air plenums, an acoustically isolated fan room, and an anechoic test chamber. This paper describes the NUWC wind tunnel facility and its supporting design criteria. The wind tunnel has achieved its design requirements of: 60 m/s maximum flow speed in a 1.2 m diameter open jet with flow uniformity within 0.5% and free stream turbulence level of 0.3%. Background noise levels are below the design goal: at 60 m/s, the 1/3 octave band sound pressure levels, 1 m from the nozzle exit, are less than 60 dB re 20 μPa @ 100 Hz and 33 dB re 20 μPa @ 20 kHz. Examples are given of experiments conducted in the wind tunnel.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Nov 15, 1998
- Source ID
- 10.1115/imece1998-0505
Entities
People
- Charles Gedney
- Gordon Tingstad
- Philip Abbot
- Pierre Corriveau
- Stanley Polhemus
Organizations
- Naval Undersea Warfare Center