A Computational Evaluation of Transonic Wind Tunnel Wall Interference on High Aspect Ratio Models in the Arnold Engineering Development Complex 16 Foot Transonic Tunnel

One of the inherent difficulties in utilizing a ventilated test section wind tunnel is the interaction of the model flow field and the test section walls. If high quality aerodynamic data is required for the system under test it is necessary to determine the impact of the test section walls on the flow field around the model. A parametric study was undertaken using the CFD code USM3Dns to determine the impact of model size and wingspan on observed transonic wind tunnel wall interference. The study used a simplified model of the Propulsion Wind Tunnel 16T test section as the test facility, and the NASA Common Research Model as the test article. CFD solutions were acquire for both free-stream and wind tunnel simulations, and the difference between the two was the inferred wall interference. Overall, the scale of the model, and thereby the model blockage, had the largest impact on the inferred transonic wall interference for both the lift and pitching moment coefficient.