DA-00-14-2 -- Investigation of Static Microisolators in Wind Tunnel Tests and Validation of CFD Cage Model PDF

The results from an experimental and numerical study of a known mouse cage (static microisolator type) placed in a wind tunnel are presented. The study involved the collection of experimental airflow data and the use of these data in the validation of the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) cage model. This validation was important as it then allowed the CFD cage model to be used to represent cages in whole room simulations, the basis of a study presented in Memarzadeh (1998). The validation exercise indicated that the CFD cage model exhibited the same air flow characteristics as the experimental cage, accounting for the spread of the experimental data. The consequence of this is that when the cage model is placed in a CFD model of a whole animal room facility, a good degree of confidence can be placed in the values obtained for the considered variables, namely, CO₂ , NH₃ , cage temperature, and RH.

Units: Dual