Windtunnel studies of surface shear stress vector distribution measurement using shear sensitive liquid crystal coatings

Shear sensitive liquid crystal coating (SSLCC) can measure surface shear stress vector distribution efficiently with a high spa-tial resolution. The purpose of the present paper is to modify and extend the surface shear stress measurement technique de-termined by Reda et al. to wind tunnel studies. All the facilities employed in the technique are very common and simple. The measurement technique is applied to surface flow beneath a tangential jet and surface flow in a turbulence wedge generated by a small cylinder in windtunnel flow. Spatially resolved shear stresses over planar surface are obtained, although the magnitude is not fully calibrated.