A turbulator is a device that turns a laminar

boundary layer In physics and fluid mechanics, a boundary layer is the thin layer of fluid in the immediate vicinity of a Boundary (thermodynamic), bounding surface formed by the fluid flowing along the surface. The fluid's interaction with the wall induces ...

into a

turbulent In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is fluid motion characterized by chaotic changes in pressure and flow velocity. It is in contrast to laminar flow, which occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers with no disruption between ...

boundary layer.

Device

Turbulent flow can be desired on parts of the surface of an aircraft wing (

airfoil An airfoil (American English) or aerofoil (British English) is a streamlined body that is capable of generating significantly more Lift (force), lift than Drag (physics), drag. Wings, sails and propeller blades are examples of airfoils. Foil (fl ...

) or in industrial applications such as

heat exchanger A heat exchanger is a system used to transfer heat between a source and a working fluid. Heat exchangers are used in both cooling and heating processes. The fluids may be separated by a solid wall to prevent mixing or they may be in direct contac ...

s and the mixing of fluids. The term “turbulator” is applied to a variety of applications and is used as a derivative of the word turbulent. However, the word has no commonly accepted technical or scientific meaning. It has been approved as a trademark in the U.S. and other countries in conjunction with machine parts used within rotating drums, sterilizers, heat transfer ovens, mixing and pelletizing machines, and air destratification fans for horticultural and agricultural uses, among others. In gliders the turbulator is often a thin zig-zag strip that is placed on the lower side of the wing and sometimes on the

vertical stabilizer A vertical stabilizer or tail fin is the static part of the vertical tail of an aircraft. The term is commonly applied to the assembly of both this fixed surface and one or more movable rudders hinged to it. Their role is to provide control, sta ...

FT742-DM50 ultrasonic wind sensor with turbulators

In wind sensors ( anemometers), the use of turbulators reduces inaccuracies in the measurement of wind speed caused by the unpredictable switching between laminar flow and turbulent flow. Therefore the calibration of the wind sensor can be accomplished more accurately. Since wind direction can be calculated from a number of wind speed measurements, the measurement of the wind direction is also improved.UK Patent GB2542354 Wind Sensor Housing. Inventor: Robin Strachan, Proprietor: FT Technologies Ltd. https://www.ipo.gov.uk/p-find-publication-getPDF.pdf?PatentNo=GB2542354&DocType=B&JournalNumber=6771

Device

See also