A novel wall interference correction method for airfoil

Abstract Corrections for wind tunnel experimental results are crucial when accounting for tunnel wall interference. This study introduces a new method, the non-uniform wall pressure signature method (NUWPSM), which is designed to address tunnel wall interference in airfoil. The improved wall pressure signature method (WPSM), an enhanced version of the WPSM, is developed to address the velocity disparities and systematic errors in pressure measurements between with and without model conditions. Furthermore, the NUWPSM considers the non-uniformity of the flow induced by the limited far-field effect in wind tunnel experiments. Utilizing experimental data from three different scaled models of the WA210 airfoil, the efficacy of both the Improved WPSM and NUWPSM is verified. Results indicate that the Improved WPSM exhibits superior capabilities in simulating the distribution of axial induced velocity along the wall compared to the traditional WPSM. Additionally, both the Improved WPSM and NUWPSM demonstrate comparable abilities in correcting tunnel wall interference, achieving precise corrections within an angle of attack range of −180° to +180°. Notably, the NUWPSM effectively captures the velocity non-uniformity induced by the limited far-field effect, thereby extending its applicability to a broader range of scenarios. Furthermore, the NUWPSM showcases enhanced robustness by eliminating human intervention in the singularity quantity and distribution.