Propulsion Lab

The Propulsion Lab of the Aerospace Engineering Dept. of IIT Kanpur is well known for Research in the area of Propulsion and combustion. The lab has completed a number of sponsored and consultancy projects for different agencies.

The lab has all research level facilities. The lab is equipped with Low Speed Cascade Tunnel (30 cm x 38 cm) with variable speed upto 60 m/sec, Tunnel (7cm x 7 cm ) for LDA facility where jet mixing studies and flow visualization can be carried out. The lab also houses a 2- shaft Gas Turbine where Power, Torque, Pressure, Temperature measurement and cycle analysis can be performed. The Lab is equipped with a continuous combustion Unit where heat balance studies, exhaust gas composition, effect of fuel and flame stability test can be performed.

Since the modern laboratory practices require automation, an on-line data acquisition on computers for all wind tunnel operation and measurement, new instruments, techniques and facilities are also being added to the lab.

Research Activities

Internal Flow Control (Active & Passive)                    

(S-Ducts, Serpentine Ducts, Cascades)

• Secondary Flow

• Separation

Flow Diagnostics

• Combustors
• Pipe flow

Turbo-machinery                               

• Compressors (surge and rotating stall)
• Secondary Flow                              
• Flutter

Thrust Vectoring

Combustion

• Diagnostics
• Instability
• Emissions

Liquid Atomization and Spray   Combustion

• Air-assisted, air-blast, effervescent, electrostatic, piezo-electric

Electric Propulsion

• Pulsed Plasma Thruster

Facilities

• Low Speed Cascade Wind Tunnel
• 2-Shaft Gas Turbine
• Continuous Combustion Unit
• Tunnel (7cm x 7cm) for LDA Facility
• Gaseous Fuel Combustion Test Rig
• Dump Combustor With Optical Windows
• Test Bench For Characterization of Fuel Atomizers

Important Instruments                                                     

• High Resolution CCD Camera for Flow Visualization
• Mini-CTA hot wire Annemometer
• Malvern Spraytech Particle Size Analyzer
• Chemiluminescence NOx Gas Analyzer
• NDIR CO/CO2 Gas  Analyzer
• Paramagnetic O2 Gas Analyzer
• Pressure Scanner
• Pulse Generator

Faculty

Prof. D.P. Mishra - Combustion, CFD of Chemically Reacting Flows, Propulsion
Dr. A. Kushari - Combustion, Propulsion
Dr. A. De - Computational combustion
For further information, Please contact

Dr. A. Kushari
Propulsion Laboratory
Department of Aerospace Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology
Kanpur - 208 016 (UP)
INDIA
Phone Numbers
Off:    +91 (512) 259-7126
Lab:   +91 (512) 259-7851
Fax:  +91 (512) 259-7561
E-mail - akushari(at)iitk.ac.in