Effective plasma buffet and drag control for laminar transonic aerofoil

Abstract

The effect of plasma actuators on shock wave–laminar boundary layer interaction was studied experimentally on transonic laminar aerofoil. The unsteady characteristics of the separation zone including the transonic buffet were measured. Two kinds of electrical discharge actuators were used for the flow control. Successful suppression of separated flow and laminar transonic buffet by plasma actuators was demonstrated. An analysis of the effect of power and frequency of the discharge on shock wave–laminar boundary layer interaction was carried out. High efficiency ratio of the separation control by plasma actuators was achieved in the experiments.

Transonic Buffet Active Control with Local Smart Skin

“…In order to eliminate the fluctuating load of transonic buffet and improve the flow stability, various passive and active control schemes are used to modify the flow in the shock wave/boundary layer interaction region and trailing edge region [3]. The control devices mainly include vortex generator [4,5], shock control bump [6,7], streamwise slot [8], plasma actuator [9,10], and trailing edge flap [11,12]. Unfortunately, due to the complexity of shock buffet, a robust control scheme for eliminating shock buffet load has not been obtained in experiments.…”

Response of the Shock Wave/Boundary Layer Interaction to Disturbances Induced by the Plasma Discharge

“…The utilization of these measurement techniques, together with the introduction of controlled perturbations into the flow and the application of data processing algorithms such as POD and cross-correlation analysis, can provide a comprehensive understanding of the unsteady processes occurring in the SWBLI zone and their interconnections. In this case, a sufficiently powerful short-duration energy source is required for perturbation generation, and an electric discharge has proven to be a suitable option [41]. Similar technology has been widely employed in the study of stability and receptivity of supersonic laminar boundary layers [42,43], where "synthetic jets" generated by electric discharges in a chamber were first utilized.…”