The PC-ADP (Pulse-Coherent Acoustic Doppler Profiler) is an ADP optimized for high-resolution, short-range, boundary layer studies. The PC-ADP combines the precision of our ADV (Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter) with the profiling capability of an ADP. Based on the mini-head ADP design, the exceptionally small PC-ADP probe-head results in a much lower flow disturbance than a standard ADP head. The optimized beam geometry provides increased maximum resolvable velocities, increased profiling ranges, reduced side-lobe interference and reduced beam-to-beam velocity decorrelations.
The demand for high-resolution profiling led to the development of our Pulse-Coherent Acoustic Doppler Profiler (PCADP). The PCADP applies the high-precision, pulse-to-pulse coherent processing that we use in our Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters (ADV) to ADP profiling applications. The 1.5-MHz PCADP can use cell sizes as small as 1.6 cm, and can gather high-quality velocity profiles at rates up to 2 Hz.
The PCADP consists of a small head (4 in. x 9 in.), designed for easy mounting, coupled with a remote electronics package that can be configured either for quick data-gathering with a laptop PC or for full-autonomous field operations (see figure below). Like our Hydra systems, PCADPs can also be integrated with a variety of third-party sensors.
The PCADP contains several features to optimize its range and velocity measurement capabilities. Its head is optimized for bottom boundary layer work, with transducers mounted at 15° off vertical to get as close to the boundary as possible. Pulse-Coherent profilers are generally velocity-limited, so we have incorporated special ambiguity resolution features to triple the maximum velocities measurable by the PCADP.
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