Wind Tunnel Build Part 2 (Knowledge Series video 6)

[@Helicopterpilot16]

I built a very rudimentary wind tunnel a few years ago; did what I was hoping to visualize which was vortices. I planned on building a better one and finally I'm biting the bullet. I'm also planning to use a radiator fan (16"). For my vapor it's going to go through the wings and exit out their tips in a specific location. Which means the connection to the wing and what allows the vapor to exit through is the same thing. I built my wings in the past out of cardstock which means I could create designated channels in the wing to direct the vapor itself to the tip. Worked perfectly. For the test section it's going to be 10x10"x3' length. All out of plexiglass. I'm thinking of painting the bottom and back side in vanta black for obvious reasons.

[@billyjoelization]

This is 4 years late, but kerosene and baby powder that you just paint on and run the fan with the body at the AOA in question. Paint your wings black and you can see exactly how your airflow behaves when the kerosene evaporates and leaves behind the baby powder. You can get very advanced by mounting through the front and rear of your view port with your mounting surface floating between two panels. You can suspend these floating panels on load cells and get some really good data. If you make your floating panels round you can get a complete plot of lift to drag at pressure and speed at different AOA by letting ms excel draw up some graphs for you with the data you capture with your loadcells. You can also print your honeycomb structure and have your smoke tubes extending straight out of that, or mount your wing vertically and introduce the smoke through the leading edge of the airfoil through tiny holes, makes for some great viewing. I mean yours was already built, but just some ideas for anyone else that might want to experiment with building one.

[@ibtissamesalbi1]

Boooom finally breathtaking results

[@DefiantWings]

Thanks!

[@tlangdon12]

Really impressed with how you researched the subject and turned that research into something that works so well! Well done, and thanks for sharing all the details of your work.

[@DefiantWings]

Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’m working on the instrumentation now. I seem to have a lot of projects going right now but I will get the next video done...

[@swissfreek]

Reynolds numbers are fascinating. I read research once that because of Reynolds numbers, insects don’t really fly in air, for them it’s more like swimming in water. And another article on the hypersonic wind tunnel that NASA runs at Goddard SFC (I think). They do it with air pressure like you said. It runs at something like 10atm and then has a 10:1 reduction to get to hypersonic speeds. The air tank is the size of a water tower and it can run for around 8 minutes. Wild.

[@DefiantWings]

If I had it to do over I think I would have studied aeronautical engineering... but I’m having a lot of fun teaching myself these days. There is so much to it. I love it!

[@swissfreek]

@@DefiantWings Hey, I tried and it didn't work out so well. I ended up majoring in exactly what flight controllers do, and they're still black magic to me. I was a lousy student...

[@TheSkyIsCalling]

It’s great to see the process of development! Thanks!

[@DefiantWings]

Jeremy H thanks! If I showed you all the failures along the way it would have been a 3 hour video 😜

[@HeraklionFPV]

Impressive results! You can change the bottom (and every surface for that matter) surface to black so it does not reflect light all over the place. Another trick would be to push the back surface further back if this is not messing with the function of your design so it does not getting any light (total black). Thank you for sharing!

[@CanineDefenseTechnologies]

I love this! I built a small wind tunnel for fun a while back and am working on 2 more for rockets with things I learned ! This video gave me some good ideas too! I totally understand the challenge of setting lights at specific angles to get the smoke to be visible and cutting all those straws in the last video 😂😂😂😂. I used a 3D printer to print the air laminator this time instead of cutting straws though wjich saved a lot of work.

[@DefiantWings]

Yeah, the straws were a pain. 3D printing would probably been easier and cheaper🤷‍♂️. Next time. I’m working on the instrumentation now. It’s coming along.

[@CanineDefenseTechnologies]

@@DefiantWings cool! Will you use a load cell to measure drag?

[@moizmirza2786]

wow thank you so much, im doing a project for my IB diploma course and wanted to make a wind tunnel and this video proved most helpful :) please continue making more, would love to see your work often

[@DefiantWings]

Thank you 🙏 I’m glad you find it useful

[@williamdecker3989]

Amazing work Shawn! Very Informative and entertaining...I'm sorry I'm late watching these!!

[@DefiantWings]

Thank you!

[@billh8173]

Really interesting, thanks for the video. Got wondering about wind tunnel, and to see your build along with basic science behind it was great. I've been wondering about trailer drag and its wind resistance. Air doesn't scale, after you said it, that should be obvious. But never thought about it, so didn't hadn't taken that into consideration if was building a model. Thanks, have whole new set of things to wrap my head around

[@DefiantWings]

Great! I’m glad the videos help you out. Aerodynamic is a great subject. The more you lean the more you realize what you don’t know 🤣

[@Pix8176]

This is great. You have out so much effort into the project and really explained how things work and why. Can’t wait for part three. I am hoping to build one for my school where I work so we can do some aerodynamic visualisations for CO2 race car designs.

[@DefiantWings]

Thanks!! I am hoping to spend more time on the instrumentation this winter now that the weather has turned and wing manufacturing has slowed a bit.

[@williamdecker3989]

We need hats Shawn! Thank you!

[@DefiantWings]

I’m planning to pull a run together in the spring. Maybe earlier if can find a good supplier

[@harshsharma5894]

Nice video. Good luck from India

[@DefiantWings]

Thank you !

[@ArvelShults]

Wow, incredible work getting to where you are!! Thanks for sharing this project!!! Something I thought about seeing when you got it working was where are the elevons that cause the pitch?? Because I would love to see the cause and effect of them .... Just a thought.... Thanks again for sharing, I just watched all of the Knowledge Series back to back :)

[@DefiantWings]

I plan on doing a series of visions using the wind tunnel once it’s completed. The pitch control of a wing with elevons is the same as with a conventional setup. Deflecting the elevon down changes the life coefficient of the wing and increases its lift. Because the aerodynamic center/center of pressure is behind the CG and increase in lift will force the nose down. A decrease in lift will force the nose up.

[@HatimShams]

That is the best guide I've ever seen out there! Thank you soo much! :D When will be video 3 out? Is there resources (for impatient people like me 😂) you recommend for to read?

[@DefiantWings]

Thank you for your kind words. I am working on part 3 but it is going very slow. I will at some links to resources in the description when I get a chance.

[@chanceym6000]

@@DefiantWings Any closer to part 3? You have inspired me to also make a wind tunnel and I am waiting to see how you decided to measure things

[@DefiantWings]

Not yet. Hopefully this winter.

[@alicejibija6525]

@@DefiantWings any update on a part 3?

[@DefiantWings]

@@alicejibija6525 no update. I just haven’t had time to get back to it.

[@msbolas123]

Great work but i think you have the wood wing upside down

[@DefiantWings]

Thx. It’s a semi-symmetrical airfoil so it can be hard to tell, but it’s right side up

[@johnfulwider7510]

I’m looking to build a wind tunnel to test out the aero dynamics of RC car Bodies for different types of racing. I’m mainly into drag racing as it’s popularity has went off the charts. Trying to understand all of this is hard on my old man brain. Math isn’t my friend either. I want to figure out a way to measure down force, drag, and lift on these bodies to determine which are best for the specific type of racing. I’m going to be mainly doing 1/10 and 1/8 scale racing. In drag racing the bodies are limited right now, so being able to make adjustments to the bodies to gain better aerodynamics which would lead to faster speeds and/or lower et’s. Any help or advice you could lend me in the building process or point me in the direction of sensors or programs that would measure downforce, drag, and lift without taking out a second mortgage, would be greatly appreciated.

[@sufysprojects2689]

fantastic project!!

[@DefiantWings]

Sufy561 thanks! It has been a fun project so far. Still more to come

[@sufysprojects2689]

@@DefiantWings great!!!

[@julietaganiele6215]

Hello, I would like to know the useful section of the tunnel, and the diameter of the copper tubes that you used. Thank you. Great job!!!!

[@DefiantWings]

The test section is on 12”x12” in section and 24” long. The tubing is 1/4” od copper tubing. I’ll have to check the ID

[@DefiantWings]

1/8” ID

[@jaketaraj763]

Great build. Can you share the wind speeds you were able to achieve with the 12V fan?

[@DefiantWings]

Unfortunately I am only seeing about 13-15mph. I don't think the fans can really handle the static pressure

[@moralesfabricio]

Cool video!

[@DefiantWings]

Thank you!

[@garyreysa4729]

Great video - thanks very much! Have you had a chance to see if the fan is really delivering 2000cfm? That is, do you get 2000 fpm or 33 mph in your 1 sqft test section?

[@DefiantWings]

I have tested it and no, it’s not putting out that much. Either it can’t handle the losses in the tunnel or it’s just a cheap, misrepresented fan or both…my money is in both 🤣

[@traderz13]

hey - did you ever finish part 3? been over a year? loved the series so far.

[@DefiantWings]

Thank you. Not yet. I had every intention but life got in the way. I hope to return to the project this winter. Thanks for following along!

[@punithp8155]

Sir how to find the wind tunnel design calculations if we want to do another size

[@DefiantWings]

Here is a link to one of the documents that I used. I found it very helpful. www.intechopen.com/books/wind-tunnel-designs-and-their-diverse-engineering-applications/design-methodology-for-a-quick-and-low-cost-wind-tunnel

[@chanceym6000]

I suggest you move the PVC manifold to the outside

[@DefiantWings]

Thx! Yes, it’s one of the modifications that I’m planning to make.

[@sabrina9606]

12:45 Could I please have the 3d printing model you used for bringing the smoke into the testing chamber?

[@DefiantWings]

Sure. It isn't much but I will dig it out and post it to thingiverse. I will comment the link as soon as I have it up there

[@sabrina9606]

@@DefiantWings thank you very much!!

[@DefiantWings]

@@sabrina9606 Wind Tunnel Smoke Rake V2 www.thingiverse.com/thing:5729438

[@hosbadhb]

Great job. Is part 3 done. I cant find it

[@DefiantWings]

Sorry no, part 3 is not done yet.

[@tahersharief2972]

Hi, you said you'll work on 2 axis mechanism to measure lift and drag... I think you forgot to upload the video PS: I really need your help in this... I'm working on the same project

[@ac5rocks]

Great work! What fan did you purchase to use in the wind tunnel?

[@DefiantWings]

JoJoTortillaBoy the fan I used came from Amazon. It is a 12v car radiator fan. 16" High Performance Black... www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQFSKN3?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share I will likely upgrade to a more powerful fan eventually

[@ac5rocks]

@@DefiantWings thank you!

[@muhammetbilgic7519]

Hi can you explain a bit how you did the smoke generator. Because i tried to do it but it failed do to the heat of the fog machine

[@DefiantWings]

The fog machine produces a lot of fog for a short time and can get hot. I use a large fog reservoir made from a sealed 18gallon tub. I use a large inlet that seals closed. The large opening lets the fog in without the fog machine touching the plastic. Once the reservoir is full I stop the fog and close the door. A small variable speed fan on the side of the reservoir pressurizes the reservoir and forces the fog out the outlet pipe that leads to smoke rake in the wind tunnel. When I run low on fog I start the process again.

[@DefiantWings]

Wind Tunnel Smoke System Walk-through kzbin.info/www/bejne/m2q2aquZnJ6HiKs

[@muhammetbilgic7519]

Thank you so much sirr

[@amirrizwan4983]

How did you setup and concentrate the smoke from the fog machine and flow it into the tube?

[@DefiantWings]

I will do a quick walkthrough video

[@amirrizwan4983]

Thanks mate, im currently working on this project and really looking forward to it 🙏🏻

[@DefiantWings]

Wind Tunnel Smoke System Walk-through kzbin.info/www/bejne/m2q2aquZnJ6HiKs

[@benzibox_dom3705]

Hi! Quick question, is there an alternative to visualize laminar without using a smoke generator? One that is hopefully more affordable?

[@zaccarrollart3493]

I made a rather questionable wind tunnel for $25 using a 2 liter soda bottle and a water atomizer that cost $13 and a $10 fan. I can send you the video if your interested. I use it for diecast cars.

[@shahnawazmohammed6491]

When is the part 3 coming

[@DefiantWings]

I’m hoping to work on it this winter and spring. I have a lot going on right now and I just haven’t had time to finish the instruments

[@Slyracoon666]

Hasn’t it been a year by now? 😳

[@DefiantWings]

It has, but life has gotten in the way and I have not been able to spend the time on the instruments that I wanted. I haven’t abandoned the project, just delayed it.

[@Argosh]

I'm confused. Why aren't you seeing upwash? I was led to believe that should be on an easily visible scale *confused*

[@alamadrid97]

Hi, i´m an Aeronautical Engineering estudent, and im building my own wind tunnel as a personal project but i'm having some trouble with finding the correct compression ratio, can someone throw some light over me and show the right path, pleaseeee!!!

[@DefiantWings]

I got a lot of my measurements and design criteria from this document: www.intechopen.com/books/wind-tunnel-designs-and-their-diverse-engineering-applications/design-methodology-for-a-quick-and-low-cost-wind-tunn It has some great explanations. Hope it helps.

[@alamadrid97]

@@DefiantWings thank you so much!!

[@tanostuebbe4062]

i luv u

[@husseinatetti-balogun1240]

1 year later...

[@DefiantWings]

Sometimes life gets in the way 🤷‍♂️. Maybe this winter.

[@husseinatetti-balogun1240]

@@DefiantWings I'm doing this as my final year project in uni and would love to be able to pick your brain whenever I get stuck. Would you mind?

[@DefiantWings]

I would be happy to answer any questions that I can. I am NOT an expert on the subject, just took a bunch of research and planning that others have done and put it to work.

[@DefiantWings]

You can contact me through my website Defiantwings.com

[@nathanl1774]

The amount of ads on the videos in this series is absurd. Stopped watching

[@DefiantWings]

Wow… sorry about that. I don’t have any control over ads. That’s all KZbin. I don’t get any ad revenue, that’s all on them. I feel your pain. The ads have gotten completely out of control on this platform and I guess because the first video did well they riddled it with ads. Again, sorry about that.