Dec 21, 2004 Universitat Rovira i Virgili Saltation/Boundary Layer Wind Tunnel facility acceptance
The Universitat Rovira I Virgili (URV), Department of Chemical Engineering, accepted on 13 December 2004 the unique saltation/boundary layer wind tunnel built for wind erosion and wind engineering testing. The facility, built and commissioned in Canada, will next be disassembled and shipped to Tarragona, Spain in the Spring of 2005 when it will be integrated with other fluid dynamic facilities into a new center of excellence. Aiolos is prime contractor for the URV wind tunnel, with a major subcontractor being the University of Guelph for saltation instrumentation. The wind tunnel circuit was built by Mirmil Products Ltd. of Trenton, Ontario who has built several other unique wind tunnels for Aiolos. Key features of the wind tunnel include a long fetch for development of an equilibrium turbulent boundary layer over a sand bed, similar to that experienced in the field, an adjustable ceiling to provide for blockage compensation during wind engineering tests, and a sand catcher to recover saltated material. The installed facility will provide Spain with a unique national test capability to explore wind related environmental phenomena.