Hot wire anemometry in transonic flow

Abstract

The use of hot-wire anemometry for obtaining fluctuating data in transonic flows has been evaluated. From hot-wire heat loss correlations based on previous transonic data, the sensitivity coefficients for velocity, density, and total temperature fluctuations have been calculated for a wide range of test conditions and sensor parameters. For sensor Reynolds numbers greater than 20 and high sensor overheat ratios, the velocity sensitivity remains independent of Mach number and equal to the density sensitivity. These conclusions were verified by comparisons of predicted sensitivities with those from recent direct calibrations in transonic flows. Based on these results, techniques are presented to obtain meaningful measurements of fluctuating velocity, density, and Reynolds shear stress using hot-wire and hot-film anemometers. Examples of these measurements are presented for two transonic boundary layers.