PIV for the EUROLIFT high-lift aerodynamics programme

Within the framework of the European High Lift Programme (Eurolift), experiments using particle image velocimetry (PIV) were performed in the Low Speed Wind Tunnel (LSWT) of EADS Bremen. The goal was to investigate the boundary layer flow on a swept, tapered wing for different configurations, at various angles of attack. From this it was intended to show that PIV is a feasible tool for investigation in industrial wind tunnel investigations. The experiments were performed over incidences from -2a to +21a, for 3 chordwise sections along the span of the model (root-region, mid-span and tip-region). For each spanwise position, various regions around the local wing chord were investigated using a combination of 2- and 3-component PIV. Over 6000 PIV images were obtained during the tests, the images capturing the flowfields from the slat wake, slat/wing gap, flow mixing over the main wing, wing/flap-gap and wing wake. Although the analysis is still ongoing, some pertinent features of the flow, such as stall separation, have already been obtained