The
No.1 24foot
Low Speed Tunnel
Tunnel Description
The No.1 low speed tunnel was
built in 1935 and has been used in a
wide variety of tests until it was closed down 1996.
The exceptionally large open
area around the working section make
this tunnel highly versatile, permitting tests on full scale structures
such as radar aerials, on propellers and helicopter rotors and on
architectural features for new buildings.
The tunnel has a reinforced
concrete air circuit of rectangular
cross-section converging into a circular nozzle for the open working
section.
The mahogany six-bladed fan is
powered by a 2000HP, 750V DC motor on
a pedestal that is separate from the tunnel structure. The motor was
refurbished in 1992 and is in good condition. Since the original DC
supply is no longer available the suggested solution is to replace it
with a modern thyristor drive
unit.
There is sufficient power available on the Business Park to run the
No.1 tunnel at full speed (1.5MVA). Slough Estates will
prepare a
site for a substation for the fan motor power to the north east of Q121.
Full Colour
Brochure in PDF format (1,220kB)
| Working
section |
24'
diameter (7.3m) |
| Design
speed |
Up
to 165ft/sec (50m/sec) |
| Floor
balance |
Two
component with manual
readout |
| Roof
balance |
Three
component with manual
readout |
| Cooling
|
Not
required |
Tunnel Equipment
The tunnel is currently equipped with a floor-mounted two-component
balance and an overhead three-component balance. These are
high
quality instruments with manual balancing and readout. Both
could
be adapted for automatic balancing and remote data capture if required.
The overhead balance is built into a moveable balance car allowing
models to be lowered into the working area from the preparation area on
the first floor.
The tunnel has a forced ventilation system which extracts air through
holes in the bell mouth that leads up to the fan. Fresh air
is
introduced from a chamber around the nozzle enabling internal
combustion engines to be run during a test.
The tunnel has a rig specially designed for propeller testing,
consisting of a 1500HP AC motor in a nacelle that can be mounted in the
air stream of the tunnel. The variable frequency AC supply
for
this motor is no longer available, so a temporary power source would be
required.
There are two large swinging gantries at the entrance to the working
area for moving heavy models into the test area.
Previous Uses of the No.1
Tunnel
The
following list of the
tunnel’s past uses gives an
indication
of its capabilities.
- Full-size aircraft
testing in 1930s
- Testing piston engines
in their nacelles with propellers
running
- Propeller noise
research, e.g. Short 330
- Nozzle noise testing
- Unmanned aircraft
research
- Helicopter rotor
testing
- VTOL research
- Re-design of Britannia
engine intakes to prevent engine
cut-outs
- Parachute testing
- Testing the behavior
of conifers for the Forestry
Commission
- Testing of portable
water-filled motorway barriers
- Testing full size
radar scanners (rotating)
- In 1960’s
– testing pitch behavior beyond
stall
for
rear-engined aircraft (BAC111, VC10, Trident)
- Testing full-size cars
– e.g. Rolls Royce, Aston Martin
|
 |
Building Modifications
Q121 is Grade I listed so any alterations will require listed building
consent. English Heritage is sympathetic to changes that will
allow the wind tunnel to be brought back into operation provided they
are done in a sensitive manner.
The building has space for workshops and offices on the first, second
and third floors. There will be additional office and
workshop
space available close by in units that are part of Slough
Estates’ development plans for the Park.
| Ground floor |
|
 |
| Uses |
square
metres
|
| Windtunnel
|
2740 |
| Workshop/storage
|
983 |
| Facilities:
WC’s, kitchens |
27
|
Admin/Education
|
380 |
Circulation
|
303
|
total
|
4533
|
|
| First
floor |
Second
floor |
Third
floor |
 |
 |
 |
For further information please
contact:
Stephen Lord, Senior Development Manager
Slough Estates plc
234 Bath Road
Slough
Berkshire SL1 4EE
Tel: 01753 213472
email: Stephen.Lord@sloughestates.co.uk
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Copyright ©
Farnborough Air Sciences Trust: Registered
Charity 1040199
Version: 1.03 date: 10 June 2005, URL: http://www.airsciences.org.uk
