Experimental control of swept-wing transition through base-flow modification by plasma actuators
S. Yadala Venkata (Université de Poitiers, TU Delft - Aerospace Engineering)
Marc T. Hehner (TU Delft - Aerospace Engineering, University of Stuttgart)
Jacopo Serpieri (TU Delft - Aerospace Engineering)
Nicolas Benard (CNRS-Université de Poitiers-ISAE-ENSMA)
Philipp C. Dörr (University of Stuttgart)
Markus J. Kloker (University of Stuttgart)
Marios Kotsonis (TU Delft - Aerospace Engineering)
More Info
expand_more
Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download, forward or distribute the text or part of it, without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license such as Creative Commons.
Abstract
Control of laminar-to-turbulent transition on a swept-wing is achieved by base-flow modification in an experimental framework, up to a chord Reynolds number of 2.5 million. This technique is based on the control strategy used in the numerical simulation by Dörr & Kloker (J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys., vol. 48, 2015b, 285205). A spanwise uniform body force is introduced using dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators, to either force against or along the local cross-flow component of the boundary layer. The effect of forcing on the stability of the boundary layer is analysed using a simplified model proposed by Serpieri et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 833, 2017, pp. 164–205). A minimal thickness plasma actuator is fabricated using spray-on techniques and positioned near the leading edge of the swept-wing, while infrared thermography is used to detect and quantify transition location. Results from both the simplified model and experiment indicate that forcing along the local cross-flow component promotes transition while forcing against successfully delays transition. This is the first experimental demonstration of swept-wing transition delay via base-flow modification using plasma actuators.