Plasma Synthetic Jet Actuators for the Control of Transonic Shock Wave Boundary Layer Interaction

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The plasma synthetic jet actuator (PSJA) is a type of active flow control device. It is able to generate powerful jet at high repetition rate. The PSJA has promising control capability in high-speed flow applications, especially in alleviating the adverse effects of shock wave boundary layer interaction. Despite the significant improvements made so far, the PSJA still suffers problem such as the requirement of multiple high-voltage power units if a PSJA array is under use. Very recently, the novel voltage relay circuit (VRC) is proposed through the principal investigator (PI)'s collaborative project under the joint funding from the Royal Society and Natural Science Foundation of China. The new VRC concept allows multiple PSJAs to be driven through one single high-voltage power unit, which is a technological breakthrough leading to the practical application of PSJA. The VRC-driven PSJA array is thus proposed as the flow control method to manipulate the transonic shock boundary layer interaction (TSWBLI), which underpins further improvement of the performances of aircraft and its propulsion system. In the UK, the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) explicitly includes 'pushing the shock buffeting boundary' as a strategically important target in the development plan for UK aerospace industries for the coming decade. The research outcome will thus contribute to the ATI target and help consolidate the leading position of UK aerospace industry.The preliminary experiment carried by the PI and his collaborator reveals that the VRC-driven PSJA array is effective in shock modulation. Moreover, the transonic wind tunnel at City, University of London is being strengthened to experiment aerodynamic problems in the transonic regime through the support of National Wind Tunnel Facility. Therefore, funding is applied to implement the VRC-driven PSJA array into the control of TSWBLI. The research outcome is going to exert direct impact to the UK aerospace sector. Although the VRC-driven PSJA is used in the transonic flow in the present project, it is also readily useful in supersonic applications where shock wave boundary layer interaction dominates.