Centrale Lyon's large-scale atmospheric wind tunnel was built in 1977 in collaboration with EDF. It enables us to observe, measure and predict the dispersion of pollutants and heat fluxes in the lower layers of the atmosphere, by reproducing specific wind profiles.
The large wind tunnel is part of a series of facilities for studying atmospheric dispersion.
- The large atmospheric wind tunnel: study of atmospheric flow and dispersion on real sites
- The academic wind tunnel: study of flow and dispersion on simplified configurations
- The experimental tunnel: for the study of natural convection and tunnel fires
Research challenges:
- Develop models to predict urban pollution, assess its health effects and minimize them
- Understand the consequences of global warming on the urban microclimate, test developments to counter the effects
- Study the impact on the population of accidental discharges by sensitive industrial sites
- Improve crisis management protocols during industrial accidents
Application areas:
Urban development, urban greening, building architecture and ventilation, industrial risks...
Instrumentation:
Sensors for temperature, concentration and speed of movement of pollutant particles to characterize their flow and evaluate variations in mass and temperature flux
14 m
length of test section
0.05 m/s
precision of the air flow generated by the fan
05 °C
temperature accuracy