Research uses laser imaging to test jet streams

research 1:27 Research uses laser imaging to test jet streams

By:

Lee Friesland

13 May 2025 176

Ph.D. candidate Madelyn Bundy and her team are using filtered Rayleigh scattering (FRS) to test particles in the streams of jet engines. The goal is to use these methods for in-flight measurements on an aircraft and what effect contrails from these engines can have on the environment.

I'm in Aerospace Engineering. Our group focuses a lot on instrumentation for the aircraft engines. Thinking about how we can do that non intrusively. So that means we don't put any sort of, like, wires or probes into the flow. We can use lasers and cameras to do things optically. We use the laser and our cameras to measure the change in intensity of the light as the air molecules scatter off of them. And then that signal is proportional to aerodynamic properties of the gas like velocity, density, and temperature. My work is focused on using this to measure particles. Particles cause a big problem for engines in general, whether or not they're being ingested, so like sand and ash or the amount that they produce. So so it and, like, small particles, those go into the atmosphere and act as condensation nuclei for contrails. So, what I'm doing here is injecting helium in the middle of that jet flow and trying to measure the concentration of the helium as it mixes with the surrounding jet. I want to be able to really help understand the environmental impacts of aircraft in flight. It's a big passion of mine, and I want to be able to see more sustainability and propulsion as we go on. And being able to make an impact has what really inspires me to keep doing this.