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Plasma Virtual Actuators for Flow Control

Prof. Kwing-So Choi

Faculty of Engineering, Nottingham University

Dielectric-barrier-discharge (DBD) plasma actuators are all-electric devices with no moving parts. They are made of a simple construction, consisting only of a pair of electrodes sandwiching a dielectric sheet. When AC voltage is applied, air surrounding the upper electrode is ionized, which is attracted towards the charged dielectric surface to form a wall jet. Control of flow over land and air vehicles as well as rotational machinery can be carried out using this jet flow on demand. Here we review recent developments in plasma virtual actuators for flow control that can replace conventional actuators for better aerodynamic performance.