Enhanced Dielectric Barrier Discharge Devices for Active Control of Flow Separation

One of the most important factors in improving aerodynamic performance of aircraft is the ability to control flow separation from lift and control surfaces. On many military aircraft, passive vortex generators are currently used to create high levels of vorticity along control and lift surfaces, but these are purely passive devices, and it would be more advantageous to create controllable levels of body force, turbulence, and vorticity to improve overall aerodynamic performance. What is needed is a practical technique for active flow control. Surface-mounted Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) plasma actuators have been studied in several laboratories, and they are a potentially attractive approach to achieve active flow control. Creare, in cooperation with the University of Minnesota, proposes to develop an active transition and drag reduction control system based upon wing-mounted DBDs using asymmetric thrust generation to improve DBD performance. We will develop a system that is practical for actual aircraft application. The system will be characterized, packaged appropriately for aircraft installation, and made robust enough to both survive and function in real-world military scenarios.