Design and Construction of an Open-circuit Wind Tunnel with Specific Measurement Equipment for Cycling

Bert Celis*, Harm H. Ubbens

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalConference articleScientificpeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)
286 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

In order to overcome resistance a cyclist has to deliver a total power output of which 90% is necessary to overcome the aerodynamic drag [1,2]. In order to perform research in this aerodynamic drag a wind tunnel has been built by the Belgium company Flanders' Bike Valley. This wind tunnel is designed using classical design rules and with specific cycling requirements an open-circuit wind tunnel is designed. This wind tunnel, containing a test section in which two cyclist can be positioned in succession, contains three main measurement systems to investigate the aerodynamic drag of a cyclist. A balance is used for the measurements of aerodynamic forces acting on the model, a bikefitting test is included to have a perfect fit between cyclist and bike and finally a PIV system is installed to investigate the flow behaviour.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)98-103
Number of pages6
JournalProcedia Engineering
Volume147
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2016
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • aerodynamics
  • bikefitting
  • PIV
  • Wind tunnel

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