Measurement errors and uncertainty estimation of an experimental set up using a 2D PIV technique

Abstract

The study of the flow interaction and the heat transfer between air jets and a surface is of paramount importance in industrial processes that apply multiple air jet impingement. To ensure a good performance of the process, high heat transfer rates and uniformization of the flow over the target plate are required. To perform this analysis, a PIV technique was implemented for the measurement of the velocity fields of the flow. However, as any real experiment, the values recorded by the PIV method are subjected to several errors that compromise the reliability and accuracy of the measurements. These errors can have different sources, from the installation and alignment to the particles seeding and calibration procedure. To determine an interval that contains the measurement error, the uncertainty quantification is crucial. In that sense, this paper focus on the identification of measurement errors and uncertainty quantification of an experimental set up specially built for the analysis of the interaction between a non-isothermal jets and non-flat surfaces moving perpendicularly to the jet axis. To ensure the reliability of the results, preliminary tests were performed to guarantee a uniform and stable flow and to determine the range and conditions of operation. In addition, this work presents an analysis of the system, and the source of errors are identified, quantified and, when possible, corrected. The particle seeding, which consists of olive oil droplets, is characterized and its efficiency for the flow tracking is analysed. The test facility was tested to fully characterize the flow field in terms of mean velocity profile and turbulence intensity over a wide range of Reynolds numbers and temperature. Several velocity fields are then measured until convergence of the flow quantities is reached. The combination of these measurements with high spatial resolution and low measurement errors allow to obtain accurate and precise measurement values.