Three-Dimensional Airflow Visualization by Smoke Tunnel

A new smoke tunnel to visualize airflow around three-dimensional models has been originated for a study of automotive aerodynamics. The necessity to develop the facility, its technical data, and some examples of visualization are discussed. The facility, whose test section is 1 m high, 1 m wide, and 1.5 m long, is provided for 1/6-scale passenger car models. Thirty-nine lines of kerosene vapor in a vertical plane make airflow clearly visible at the airspeed of 2-9 m/s. The high Reynolds number of 2.5 X 10⁵, based on wheelbase, is obtained.