Experiments in hand-operated, hypersonic shock tunnel facility

Abstract

Experiments were conducted using the newly developed table-top, hand-operated hypersonic shock tunnel, otherwise known as the Reddy hypersonic shock tunnel. This novel instrument uses only manual force to generate the shock wave in the shock tube, and is designed to generate a freestream flow of Mach 6.5 in the test section. The flow was characterized using stagnation point pressure measurements made using fast-acting piezoelectric transducers. Schlieren visualization was also carried out to capture the bow shock in front of a hemispherical body placed in the flow. Freestream Mach numbers estimated at various points in the test section showed that for a minimum diameter of 46 mm within the test section, the value did not vary by more than 3 % along any cross-sectional plane. The results of the experiments presented here indicate that the device may be successfully employed for basic hypersonic research activities at the university level.