Proper Orthogonal Decomposition of Unsteady Aerodynamic Flows

This work constitutes the final report for a project funded by the Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique. The objective of the project was to acquire and install Par-tical Image Velocimetry (PIV) hardware in the University of Liege Wind Tunnel facility in order to carry out the Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) of un-steady aerodynamic flows. The characteristics and installation of the PIV system are described in the present report. Furthermore, the application of POD analysis to three different visualized flow cases is detailed. The flow cases were: flow be-hind a circular cylinder and separated flow over a rectangular wing. In all cases, emphasis was given to the combination of unsteadiness caused by both boundary layer separation and movement of the wind tunnel model. It is shown that the de-composition of flowfields that combine these two sources of unsteadiness is possible and informative.