Preface
The purpose of this book is to present an inventory of experimental facilities and
techniques commonly utilised in the field of aerodynamics, which remains paramount for the design of aerial and ground vehicles, propulsion and energy generation systems, and, also in the civil engineering industry and in more fundamental
environmental flow studies, but not limited to these. Aerodynamic studies do not
only target the improvement of vehicle performance and comfort, but also, more
and more, the emission of greenhouse gases within the earth’s atmosphere and
noise within the neighbourhood of residential areas. Due to the ever-increasing
demand of both aerial and ground transportation, these emissions require immediate
moderation in order to sustain this industry, and improvement in aerodynamic
performance is definitely a way forward. The book also aims to provide updated
information on the means and techniques used by aerodynamicists, and more
generally in the field of fluid mechanics. In particular, a large part is dedicated to
measurement techniques and instrumentations which have undergone tremendous
improvements over the last 40 years. These improvements Allowing access to very
precise diagnostic techniques and hence increasing our knowledge of the behaviour
of highly complex flows. This remarkable development can be compared with the
equally impressive progress in the field of computational fluid dynamics (CFD).
Measurement and instrumentation is a stimulating field in its own right and has
greatly benefited from the most advanced knowledge of basic physics, mainly wave
theory, optics and signal processing, and mathematics. This book, however, retains
a general character; the readers wishing to deepen their knowledge in the subject are
referred to more specialised literature in the field of measurement techniques. The
targeted readers are graduate students and engineers wishing to embark on the
theme of experimental aerodynamics.
vii
The purpose of this book is to present an inventory of experimental facilities and
techniques commonly utilised in the field of aerodynamics, which remains paramount for the design of aerial and ground vehicles, propulsion and energy generation systems, and, also in the civil engineering industry and in more fundamental
environmental flow studies, but not limited to these. Aerodynamic studies do not
only target the improvement of vehicle performance and comfort, but also, more
and more, the emission of greenhouse gases within the earth’s atmosphere and
noise within the neighbourhood of residential areas. Due to the ever-increasing
demand of both aerial and ground transportation, these emissions require immediate
moderation in order to sustain this industry, and improvement in aerodynamic
performance is definitely a way forward. The book also aims to provide updated
information on the means and techniques used by aerodynamicists, and more
generally in the field of fluid mechanics. In particular, a large part is dedicated to
measurement techniques and instrumentations which have undergone tremendous
improvements over the last 40 years. These improvements Allowing access to very
precise diagnostic techniques and hence increasing our knowledge of the behaviour
of highly complex flows. This remarkable development can be compared with the
equally impressive progress in the field of computational fluid dynamics (CFD).
Measurement and instrumentation is a stimulating field in its own right and has
greatly benefited from the most advanced knowledge of basic physics, mainly wave
theory, optics and signal processing, and mathematics. This book, however, retains
a general character; the readers wishing to deepen their knowledge in the subject are
referred to more specialised literature in the field of measurement techniques. The
targeted readers are graduate students and engineers wishing to embark on the
theme of experimental aerodynamics.
vii