Simultaneous air pressure and velocity measurement using pressure-sensitive flow tracers

Abstract

Our understanding of the physics of air ows may benefit from direct full-field pressure measurement. In this work, we demonstrate the possibility of simultaneous planar velocity and pressure measurement of an air flow using pressure-sensitive tracer particles. Specifically, polystyrene microparticles embedded with pressure-sensitive dye PtOEP are fabricated and used to quantify the velocity and pressure variations of an air flow. The velocity field is obtained by particle tracking and the pressure field is inferred from the emission lifetime of the dye. Our experiment offers preliminary evidence for the possibility of simultaneous velocity and pressure measurement of an airflow using pressure-sensitive tracer particles.