Numerical Simulation of the Flow in the ONERA F1 Wind Tunnel

This paper presents the outcome of numerical simulations of the flowfield inside the ONERA F1 wind tunnel, which is a large-scale pressurized low-speed wind tunnel mostly used to investigate the takeoff and landing performance of aircrafts in high-lift configuration. The simulations were carried out under Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes modeling assumptions. Results were compared to available experimental data characterizing the tunnel flowfield, especially in the test section. The overall flow physics is well captured by the simulations. However, when looking at the result with a more demanding level of accuracy, some important characteristics of the velocity distribution in the test section, such as flow upwash and total pressure distribution, are not replicated. Reasons are discussed in the paper, and some recommendations are derived for future similar simulations.