Abstract

MADOLET PINTO, Carolina; GRANADOS AVELLANEDA, Edison Gerardo  and  GARCIA SANCHEZ, Carlos Eduardo. QUANTIFICATION OF OBSTRUCTIONS' EFFECT IN THE TRANSVERSAL AREA OF A WIND TUNNEL ON THE CALIBRATION RESULTS OF ANEMOMETERSS. Cienc. Ing. Neogranad. [online]. 2018, vol.28, n.2, pp.105-120. ISSN 0124-8170.  https://doi.org/10.18359/rcin.2904.

The instruments used to calculate physical quantities require periodic calibrations to ensure the reliability and accuracy of their measurements. One of the most widely used anemometer calibration methods is to directly compare the readings obtained by the anemometer to be calibrated and a standard instrument by exposing both to a gas at the same speed within a wind tunnel. However, the presence of the anemometer being calibrated creates an obstruction that can distort the velocity profile inside the wind tunnel. Therefore, the objective of this research was to study and model the effect of obstructions caused by anemometers being tested on velocity profiles inside wind tunnel WSL 20 of the Corporación Centro de Desarrollo Tecnológico de Gas and, thus, evaluate their influence on instrument calibration. The results show that type L Pitot tubes do not cause a significant distortion of the velocity profile, whereas vane anemometers of different dimensions increase the speed recorded by the standard tool, which varied between 2.5 and 5.6 %. Considering the effect of obstructions inside the wind tunnel and quantifying the bias caused by them is relevant to avoid a systematic error in the calibration process.

Keywords : anemometer calibration; gas velocity meters; velocity profile; wind tunnel.

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