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Supersonic Wind Tunnel
The UT Arlington supersonic wind tunnel is a blowdown type tunnel equipped with a variable Mach number nozzle. The wind tunnel was developed in-house except for the donation of a nozzle by LTV (presently Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control). The current achievable Mach number range is 1.5 to 4 with Reynolds numbers between 60 and 140 million per meter. In 2006, two new 750 psig storage tanks were added to the system creating a total air storage volume of 24.5 cubic meters. This allows for much longer run times (~45 seconds for a Mach 2.5 experiment). A new test section has also been designed with three large windows for optical access. This will be very helpful for better understanding supersonic plasma flow and Lorentz force interaction.

The Supersonic Wind Tunnel Plenum Chamber and Test Section

 

Cutaway View of the New Test Section

The Entire Test Section Assembly

Test Section Mach Number Contours (Upstream Mach Number = 2.5)

Test Section Static Pressure Contours (Upstream Mach Number = 2.5)