Measuring the Lift of Airfoils Using a Wind Tunnel

Overview

Objectives/Goals The objective of this study is to determine if the location of the maximum thickness of an airfoil affects the amount of lift generated. Methods/Materials Balsa wood to create airfoils, metric scale, airfoil stand, and wind tunnel. We recorded the amount of lift generated when each airfoil was placed into the wind tunnel and onto the scale. The lift is displayed in negative numbers on the scale, because we were measuring the decrease in weight. Results The airfoil with the maximum thickness the closest to the tip of the airfoil generated the most lift, the airfoil with the maximum thickness furthest away from the tip created the second-most lift, and the airfoil with the maximum thickness between that of the other two airfoils produced the least lift. Conclusions/Discussion The experiment demonstrated that the location of the maximum thickness does have an effect upon the efficiency of the airfoil. However, we did not have access to the required instruments to determine what changed in the way the air flowed around the airfoils to cause this change.

Awards (1)

• Honorable Mention

Competition history

• CSEF 2017 Aerodynamics/ Hydrodynamics (Junior Division Only) · Entry J0101

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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