Simultaneous assessment of peak-locking and CCD readout errors through a multiple Δt strategy

Abstract

The multiple Δt strategy is an inexpensive procedure that can be implemented with any usual particle image velocimetry (PIV) set up. The only requirement is acquiring different series of PIV image pairs, setting a different time between laser pulses for each series. With this additional information, robust procedures for error assessment are possible. Within this strategy, this paper offers new discoveries that correct and complement previous works by the authors. Nogueira et al. (Meas Sci Technol 20–7:074001, 2009) addressed the tasks of assessing CCD readout and peak-locking bias errors separately. In this paper, a new approach, of general application to PIV, is proposed for assessing both errors simultaneously. Additionally, it unveils the effect of the flow variability on the local amplitude of the peak-locking bias. In a different work, Nogueira et al. (Exp Fluids. doi: 10.1007/s00348-011-1094-2, 2011) have focused on assessing peak-locking rms error. That paper achieved only order of magnitude estimations of the rms error because one of its components was overlooked. Here, the new term is included and the assessment obtained is good enough to correct rms systematic errors, improving the measurement of the turbulent kinetic energy or similar flow magnitudes. After describing the strategies, the application to selected synthetic and real cases is presented, validating the modeling of the errors behavior when dealing with turbulent flows. The results indicate the possibility to assess bias errors in the range from 0.01 to 0.2 pixels for both sources (peak locking and CCD readout) simultaneously. Furthermore, the previous works simply assessed the magnitude of the errors, but the results of the new procedures proposed here, in some cases, are good enough to correct the measurement itself. In addition, the determination of zones where these errors are not the dominant ones is presented.