Design, construction, characterization and test testing a vertical wind tunnel, to free fall tests of bodies

Abstract

In the present work the process of design, construction and characterization of a vertical wind tunnel for the test of objects in free fall, in particular aerodynamic rotary wing decelerators (pararotors) is detailed. The wind tunnel is a special equipment for experimental tests, which seeks to know the interaction between a solid body under study and the uniform flow of air at various speed conditions, in order to evaluate the fluid dynamic behavior, energy, aerodynamic and stability of the body under study, with the particularity that the air flow circulates from bottom to top, simulating an almost free flight condition of the body. Mainly the wind tunnel consists of a camera or test section, a fan responsible for generating the air flow, a special geometric structure according to the needs, ducts and adapters, and the necessary instrumentation for the measurements. The present tunnel was developed mainly for the purpose of testing pararotors. These probes have as main object to stop the free fall of a body in the atmosphere. There are multiple applications of these decelerators, such as the recovery of elements from space, the stabilization of the rotation of projectiles, the transport of loads with precision and the use of meteorological probes. Likewise, they have a potential application in sending probes where the risk of entry is very high, such as fires or areas affected by toxic or bacteriological spills.