One-of-a-kind flow bench is operational again at AEDC

  • Published
  • By Philip Lorenz III
Arnold Air Force Base, Tenn. --  Arnold Engineering Development Center's (AEDC) Precision Measurement Equipment Laboratory (PMEL) recently brought a unique liquid flow calibrator back into service. The large machine, a prototype, is used to calibrate liquid flow meters found in test cells on base and throughout the Air Force and also overseas.
Troy Holland, an Aerospace Testing Alliance (ATA) instrument technician at the center's PMEL, said the flow calibrator is one of only seven of its size and capability found throughout the Air Force.
ATA is the support contractor for AEDC.
"What makes this flow bench unique is not so much its size, but the high rate of gallons-per-minute it's capable of measuring to calibrate flow meters," he said. "Also, what sets the bench apart from the others is its ability to calibrate the flow of water, which is very corrosive."
A flow meter is a device for measuring the flow rate of a moving liquid, like water or JP8, a type of jet fuel used to power an engine in a test cell. A flow calibrator ensures the flow meter is accurately measuring the flow rate of water or jet fuel used in testing or support of a base's mission. PMEL's technicians add a mixture of water and propylene glycol into the flow calibrator to simulate hydrocarbon fuels.
We've performed calibrations for other Air Force bases in support of their specific missions, to include calibrations for the desert mission in Qatar," said Vince Chapman, the 704th Maintenance Squadron's laboratories program manager. "James Winchester's work and his collaboration with NIST have become pivotal to AEDC and the entire Air Force. The Air Force Metrology and Calibration (AFMETCAL) program office now views us as leaders in flow measurement and their engineers work well with Mr. Winchester developing methodologies towards standardization, reliability, and improvement of measurement uncertainty. Also, our technicians in the Flow Lab are seasoned in this measurement discipline and our success can be attributed to their work as well."
It was design flaws in the pumps and motor speed controls that made repairing the large flow calibrator at AEDC's PMEL a necessity. The high demand for the bench and the unavailability of critical replacement parts made fixing it vitally important and difficult, according to Chapman.
"Getting this flow bench back into operation has been a top priority and a challenge, but one the professionals at our PMEL and from other areas on base have risen to and met," he said. "The team at AEDC working on this project included pipe fitters Mike Lance and Marcus Crabtree, designer Mike Carter, planner Thomas "Bud" Stovall, scheduler Forrest McCullough, supervisor Howard "Butch" Partin and engineers Joe Reavis, Scott Sisk and James Winchester.
"Also, this project has had a low impact on the customer because this team looked at the work load, communicated with the customer and chose when to bring this bench down for repairs."