Application of novel pressure-sensitive paint formulations for the surface flow mapping of high-speed jets

Two paints, which have been developed in-house at the Aero-Physics Laboratory (APL) at the University of Manchester, are studied here. One formulation uses hydrochloric acid (PSP1-HCl) and the other acetone as the solvent (PSP2-Ace). The current study employs the well known schlieren photography technique together with the relatively new PSP method, with comparison to discrete measurements, to examine the flow through a two-dimensional air-ejector system and examines the efficacy of the PSP formulations in providing an accurate global pressure field of the aforementioned setup. Detailed analysis of the errors and drawbacks involved in PSP measurements along with possible solutions to overcome them are also presented. Fully expanded jet Mach numbers in the range of 0.52 ⩽ Mj ⩽ 1.36 were examined.