中国物理B ›› 2016, Vol. 25 ›› Issue (2): 24703-024703.doi: 10.1088/1674-1056/25/2/024703

• ELECTROMAGNETISM, OPTICS, ACOUSTICS, HEAT TRANSFER, CLASSICAL MECHANICS, AND FLUID DYNAMICS • 上一篇    下一篇

Wind tunnel experiments on flow separation control of an Unmanned Air Vehicle by nanosecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation

Kang Chen(陈康) and Hua Liang(梁华)   

  1. 1. School of Astronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710032, China;
    2. School of Aeronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710032;
    3. School of Aeronautics and Astronautics Engineering, Air Force Engineering University, Xi'an 710038, China
  • 收稿日期:2015-08-28 修回日期:2015-09-27 出版日期:2016-02-05 发布日期:2016-02-05
  • 通讯作者: Hua Liang E-mail:lianghua82702@126.com
  • 基金资助:
    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61503302, 51207169, and 51276197), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 2014M562446), and the Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province, China (Grant No. 2015JM1001).

Wind tunnel experiments on flow separation control of an Unmanned Air Vehicle by nanosecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation

Kang Chen(陈康)1 and Hua Liang(梁华)2,3   

  1. 1. School of Astronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710032, China;
    2. School of Aeronautics, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710032;
    3. School of Aeronautics and Astronautics Engineering, Air Force Engineering University, Xi'an 710038, China
  • Received:2015-08-28 Revised:2015-09-27 Online:2016-02-05 Published:2016-02-05
  • Contact: Hua Liang E-mail:lianghua82702@126.com
  • Supported by:
    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61503302, 51207169, and 51276197), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 2014M562446), and the Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province, China (Grant No. 2015JM1001).

摘要: Plasma flow control (PFC) is a new kind of active flow control technology, which can improve the aerodynamic performances of aircrafts remarkably. The flow separation control of an unmanned air vehicle (UAV) by nanosecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation (NDPAA) is investigated experimentally in this paper. Experimental results show that the applied voltages for both the nanosecond discharge and the millisecond discharge are nearly the same, but the current for nanosecond discharge (30 A) is much bigger than that for millisecond discharge (0.1 A). The flow field induced by the NDPAA is similar to a shock wave upward, and has a maximal velocity of less than 0.5 m/s. Fast heating effect for nanosecond discharge induces shock waves in the quiescent air. The lasting time of the shock waves is about 80 us and its spread velocity is nearly 380 m/s. By using the NDPAA, the flow separation on the suction side of the UAV can be totally suppressed and the critical stall angle of attack increases from 20° to 27° with a maximal lift coefficient increment of 11.24%. The flow separation can be suppressed when the discharge voltage is larger than the threshold value, and the optimum operation frequency for the NDPAA is the one which makes the Strouhal number equal one. The NDPAA is more effective than the millisecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation (MDPAA) in boundary layer flow control. The main mechanism for nanosecond discharge is shock effect. Shock effect is more effective in flow control than momentum effect in high speed flow control.

关键词: nanosecond discharge, plasma aerodynamic actuation, UAV, separation

Abstract: Plasma flow control (PFC) is a new kind of active flow control technology, which can improve the aerodynamic performances of aircrafts remarkably. The flow separation control of an unmanned air vehicle (UAV) by nanosecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation (NDPAA) is investigated experimentally in this paper. Experimental results show that the applied voltages for both the nanosecond discharge and the millisecond discharge are nearly the same, but the current for nanosecond discharge (30 A) is much bigger than that for millisecond discharge (0.1 A). The flow field induced by the NDPAA is similar to a shock wave upward, and has a maximal velocity of less than 0.5 m/s. Fast heating effect for nanosecond discharge induces shock waves in the quiescent air. The lasting time of the shock waves is about 80 us and its spread velocity is nearly 380 m/s. By using the NDPAA, the flow separation on the suction side of the UAV can be totally suppressed and the critical stall angle of attack increases from 20° to 27° with a maximal lift coefficient increment of 11.24%. The flow separation can be suppressed when the discharge voltage is larger than the threshold value, and the optimum operation frequency for the NDPAA is the one which makes the Strouhal number equal one. The NDPAA is more effective than the millisecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation (MDPAA) in boundary layer flow control. The main mechanism for nanosecond discharge is shock effect. Shock effect is more effective in flow control than momentum effect in high speed flow control.

Key words: nanosecond discharge, plasma aerodynamic actuation, UAV, separation

中图分类号:  (Flow control)

  • 47.85.L-
52.80.Tn (Other gas discharges) 47.32.Ff (Separated flows)