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Aviation History
1955
1955 - 1473.PDF
FLIGHTs 7 October 1955 583 Aeronautical Research in Canada Eleventh British Commonwealth and Empire Lecture By Dr. J. J. GREEN* THE full title of this most important Royal AeronauticalSociety lecture, which was read at the Royal Institution,Albemarle Street, London, yesterday, was The Growth of Aeronautical Research in Canada During the Post-War Decade It may be recalled that last year the author of the tenth lecture was the Duke of Edinburgh, whose subject was Aviation and the Development of Remote Areas. In spite of the title of his lecture, Dr. Green naturally gave a brief historical survey of research in Canada before turning to the post-war decade. The concise manner in which he traced the beginnings and the progress of research since 1902 renders this introductory section most valuable for record purposes. Dr. Green said that Canada's first wind tunnel was built in 1902 at Rothesay, New Brunswick, by W. Rupert Tumbull and it was here that aeronautical research in Canada had its birth. A Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and an Honorary Fellow of the Canadian Aeronautical Institute, Dr. Turnbull won the bronze medal of the Society in 1911 and at the time of his death in 1954 at the age of 84 he was maintaining his interest in aviation and studying the art of bird flight. The results of his wind tunnel studies of aerofoils, in which he was seeking auto- matic stability, were published in full in the Physical Review in 1907. For the study of propellers in axial motion he built himself a 300-ft track, with a little carriage to carry the propeller and its driving motor. He published three papers, one on The Efficiency of Aerial Propellers in the Scientific American, and two papers in the Journal of the R.Ae.S. on The Laws of Airscrews. After the First World War he designed a controllable-pitch airscrew which was successfully tested at Camp Borden by the R.C.A.F. He sold his patent rights to the Curtiss-Wright Company and from these the Curtiss electric propeller was developed. Aeronautical development in Canada began about the same time, also in the Maritime Provinces. At Baddeck, Nova Scotia, Alexander Graham Bell was experimenting with novel designs of kites from which, by the application of power, he hoped to achieve flight at die least possible risk of human life. He was greatly interested in the work done by Professor Langley, who in 1894 visited Baddeck to witness some of Dr. Bell's own experi- ments. Two years later Dr. Bell saw a trial flight of Langley's "Aerodrome." The sight of this steam-powered model travers- ing the sky impressed him enormously. In his own words "Encouraged and stimulated by this remarkable exhibition of success I quietly continued my experiments in my Nova Scotia Laboratory in the hope that I, too, might be able to contribute something to the world's knowledge of this important subject." In 1907, Glenn Curtiss, whose light gasoline engines had earned him a reputation, was invited to Baddeck to advise Dr. Bell on the application of power to his tctrahedral kites. Two young Canadians, J. A. D. McCurdy and F. W. "Casey" Baldwin, were invited to consult with Bell on the structural details. From this meeting, the Aerial Experiment Association was formed and four successful aircraft were built between 1908 and 1909. The first flight of "Red Wing" on March 12,1908, at Hammondsport, N.Y., by F. W. Baldwin was claimed as the first flight by a British subject, while McCurdy's liight at Baddeck on February 23rd, 1909, in the "Silver Dart," was claimed as the first flight within the Empire. This group of development engineers were the first to employ ailerons for lateral control. Mr. McCurdy tells me how he was explaining his method of lateral control by _ little wings to a French pioneer who, comprehending, exclaimed "Ah! ailerons" and the name stuck. Dr. Green's next historical references concerned the latter pan of the 1914-18 war. He said that the first Canadian University to take a serious interest in aeronautics was that of Toronto, which established an aerodynamic research laboratory in 1917 at the instigation of Mr. J. H. Parkin, then on the engineering teaching staff. The University recognized that aviation would play a part in the development of Canada and at the same time that Canada would impose on air transportation unique operating conditions. In 1918 the University constructed its first wind tunnel, a 4ft N.P.L.-type with a speed of 37 m.p.h. This was replaced in 1923 by a more efficient tunnel of the same size working section but having a wind speed of 60 m.p.h. These University facilities were used for training and research and also for testing models of aircraft under development by the Canadian Aircraft Industry- The researches were mostly of an engineering nature and were concerned with aircraft problems, such as the interference between wings and fuselages, the relative efficiencies of various wing tips, the downwash behind wings, the aerodynamic effects of wing taper and the influence of thick wings in biplane arrangements. During these years a Canadian company bearing the illus- trious name of Vickers designed a number of aircraft well-remem- bered in Canada but with names which the lecturer thought must sound strange to the ears of his audience: the Vigil and the Velos and the flying boats Vedette, Varuna, Vanessa, Vancouver and Vista. Models of these aircraft were all tested in the Toronto University wind tunnel before being built and flown. Mr. B. S. Shenstone wrote a very fine thesis based on an exhaustive analysis of the flight stability of the popular and successful flying boat, the Vedette. A single-engined machine, it was used by the R.C.A.F. for forestry patrol and aerial photography. On February 7th, 1920, the first meeting took place of the Associate Air Research Committee, which was created by the National Research Council at the request of the Canadian Air Board (forerunner of the R.C.A.F.). Its first task was to survey the university facilities which might be available for aeronautical research purposes. Among the subjects listed by the Committee in 1920 for special attention were photography as applied to topo- graphical survey, experimental and theoretical studies of aero- plane stability, air navigation problems, especially as regarded the use of directional wireless, propulsion and the possibilities of variable pitch propellers and the physiological effects of flying. Many of these subjects did receive attention in the 10 years that followed. TurnbulTs controllable pitch propeller, although several years in advance of its time, was completed and ground-tested in 1923. Loss of the propeller in a fire delayed the air tests until 1927. At Alberta University, Professor C. A. Robb tackled the prob- lems of aero engines at low temperatures. Over a number of winters, he conducted experiments on engine operation, with special reference to starting difficulties and the effect of tempera- ture on lubrication and cooling. At this stage, Dr. Green also referred to the work of Professor L. V. King of McGill, Professor Bronson of Dalhousie, Mr. Stanley Smith at Alberta and Mr. Parkin at Toronto. In 1929 the Government authorized the construction of aero- nautical laboratories by the National Research Council. These included a 9ft open jet wind tunnel with a maximum speed of 230ft/sec, a model testing basin some 400ft long, an engine test- ing laboratory and later, an aircraft instrument section and a fuel and lubricants laboratory. In 1935 the study of aircraft icing was begun in a serious way. The first experiments were concerned with keeping propellers free of ice and the idea was conceived that the right way to do this was by electrical heating. In 1939, with international tension mounting, new and expanded aeronautical laboratories were designed by the N.R.C. to serve the anticipated needs of the R.C.A.F. and industry. A slightly larger wind tunnel with double the speed of the 9ft tunnel was built and a modern spinning tunnel was provided. A new model basin was added with greater length and width and a modern engine laboratory was constructed. Two important new laboratories were included, an aircraft structures and a low- temperature laboratory. New and improved fuel and lubricant and aircraft instrument laboratories were also provided. Looking back on the war period, said Dr. Green, a modest contribution to basic knowledge was made here and there. A multitude of small jobs, mostly uninspiring and unspectacular, were done under pressure and urgency, but they scarcely made interesting history. If they added but little to general knowledge, they had at least enhanced the experience and competence of the staff. At the end of the war the National Research Council had a well- experienced and mature staff of fairly adequate size. Their facilities had proved to be well-suited to the war needs. The opportunity now arose to direct their capabilities into funda- mental research channels, and such a policy was accepted, although while the emphasis was to be on research, it was agreed that the laboratories would continue wherever possible to assist the industry, which had also grown and matured during the war. Next Dr. Green referred to the Government decision to participate actively in the gas turbine field, and the initial step of creating Turbo Research, Ltd., a Crown company. Shortly after the end of the war, the Canadian Government also decided * Dr. J. J. Green, M.B.E., B.Sc, A.R.C.S., D.I.C., F.l.AS., F.C.A.J., F.R.At.S-, it Defence Research Member, Canadian Joint Staff, in Washington, D.C.
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