Aerothermal Characterization of the Plasmatron X Wind Tunnel: Optical Emission Spectroscopy and Jet Temperature Reconstruction

Characterization of the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) torch at the Plasmatron X facility developed by the Center for Hypersonics & Entry Systems Studies (CHESS) was performed by means of optical emission spectroscopy (OES). OES provides a noninvasive method of identifying both atomic and molecular species within the plasma jet without physically perturbing the flow. Additionally, experimental spectra can be compared to simulated spectra to provide estimates of the gas temperature. In this work, we present the preliminary results of a spectroscopic characterization campaign of the newly commissioned 350 kW ICP wind tunnel, identifying the chemical composition and determining the gas temperatures as a function of the tunable parameter spaces (i.e., applied power and static pressure).