Air jet interaction with a wetted surface: towards designing the next generation auto wash facilities

使用盐和其他刺激性化学物质在加拿大很常见，以确保冬季驾驶道路的安全。这些化学物质虽然能有效地防止道路结冰，但会导致车辆过早退化。森科尔开发了名为Glide Wash的下一代洗车设施，旨在有效地清除车辆上的污垢和道路化学品，以延长其使用寿命。截至目前，Glide Wash设施的洗涤阶段表现符合预期。然而，干燥阶段的表现不佳。当前一代的干燥机噪音大，耗能大，而且最重要的是，人们发现它们不能满足公司或消费者对除水性能的满意要求。这项建议旨在通过一系列关于空气喷射与地表水滴相互作用的实验研究来改进除水过程。水滴上的气动载荷将取决于水滴到飞行器上射流撞击位置的距离，远离撞击位置的液滴会经历更均匀的流动，而在近射流区域，液滴的载荷会经历急剧的空间梯度。将研究各种喷射参数(包括角度和速度)下水滴在施加气动载荷时的变形和运动情况，目的是为最佳地从表面去除水分所需的喷射特性制定一套准则。这些指导方针将有助于开发下一代空气喷射式干燥机，将其纳入Glide Wash洗车设施家族。

The use of salt and other harsh chemicals is common in Canada to keep roads safe for driving in winter. These chemicals, while effective at keeping ice at bay on the roads, lead to premature degradation of vehicles. Suncor has developed a next-generation car wash facility, called Glide Wash, with the aim of effectively removing dirt and road chemicals from vehicles in order to extend their operational lives. As of now, the washing phase of the Glide Wash facility is performing up to expectations. The drying phase, however, is underperforming. Current generation dryers are loud, consume considerable energy, and, most importantly, have been found not to meet corporate or consumer satisfaction requirements regarding water removal performance. This proposal seeks to improve the water removal process through a series of experimental investigations on the interaction of an air jet with surface water droplets. The aerodynamic loading on the water droplets is expected to depend on the distance of the droplet from the jet impact location on the vehicle, with droplets far from impact site experiencing more uniform flow, while the near jet region the droplets experience sharp spatial gradients in loading. The deformation and motility of water droplets due to the applied aerodynamic loading will be investigated for various jet parameters, including angle and speed, with the aim of developing a set of guidelines for the jet characteristics necessary to optimally remove water from the surface. These guidelines will be aid in the development of next generation air jet dryers for incorporation into the Glide Wash family of car wash facilities.