EAGER: Large-Scale Refractive-Index-Matched Flow Facility Support

1241349 Christensen该赠款将用于购买指数匹配流体，以运行现有的大型流动设施，以探索复杂地形（与空气动力学和地球物理现象相关），复杂几何形状（多孔介质和珊瑚礁，涡轮机等中的流动）中的流动。以及在存在微粒的情况下（沉积物迁移、营养物迁移、污染物和气溶胶扩散等）。RI匹配（RIM）流动设施将允许伊利诺伊州的研究人员在浸入重量约63%的碘化钠溶液中时，使复杂的丙烯酸固体模型和/或颗粒光学透明，从而最大限度地减少反射和失真，并促进彻底的非侵入性实验。智力优势-该设施的独特之处在于其大尺寸（0.45 m x 0.45 m x 2.5 m试验段），允许在相关尺度和雷诺数下进行流动研究。NSF的这笔资金弥补了剩余的资金缺口。这样做将防止团队不得不追求体积减少，这将破坏大型设施的新奇和范式转变能力，正如最初的MRI资金所预期的那样。更广泛的影响-研究人员在多个层次（46名本科生和812名研究生，35名博士后和35名访问研究人员，每年预计在伊利诺伊州教师的研究小组之间的MRI提案）将立即受益于一个一类的培训和研究经验，一旦设施投入使用。特别是，这种独特的培训和教育将使这些研究人员成为学术界和工业界实验流体力学的下一代领导者。该设施将以共享使用的方式运行，这意味着其积极影响将远远超出伊利诺伊州，扩展到其他大学和私营部门的研究人员（除了上面列出的数字）。

1241349ChristensenThis grant will be used to purchase index-matching fluid to operate an existing large-scale flow facility to explore flows over complex topography (relevant to aerodynamics and geophysical phenomena), within complex geometries (flow in porous media and coral reefs, turbines, etc.) and in the presence of particulates (sediment transport, nutrient transport, pollutant and aerosol dispersion, etc.). The RI-matched (RIM) flow facility will permit Illinois researchers to render complex acrylic solid models and/or particulates optically transparent when immersed in a sodium iodide solution at ~63% by weight, thereby minimizing reflections and distortion and facilitating thorough non-intrusive experimentation. Intellectual Merit - The uniqueness of this facility lies in its large size (0.45 m x 0.45 m x 2.5 m test section), allowing flow studies at relevant scales and Reynolds numbers. This funding from NSF overcomes the remainder of the funding shortfall. Doing so will prevent the team from having to pursue volume reduction that would undermine the novelty and paradigm-shifting capabilities of the large-scale facility as intended with the original MRI funding. Broader Impacts - Researchers on multiple levels (46 undergraduate and 812 graduate students, 35 postdocs and 35 visiting researchers per year anticipated amongst the research groups of the Illinois faculty on the MRI proposal) will immediately benefit from one-of-a-kind training and research experiences once the facility is operational. In particular, this unique training and education will position these researchers as the next generation of leaders in experimental fluid mechanics in both academia and industry. The facility will be run in a shared-use manner, meaning its positive impact will extend well beyond Illinois to researchers at other universities and in the private sector (in addition to the numbers listed above).