Plasma Streamwise Vortex Generators for Flow Separation Control on Trucks

An experimental study of the effect of Dielectric Barrier Discharge plasma actuators on the flow separation on the A-pillar of a modern truck under cross-wind conditions has been carried out. The experiments were done in a wind tunnel with a 1:6 scale model of a tractor-trailer combination. The actuators were used as vortex generators positioned on the A-pillar on the leeward side of the tractor and the drag force was measured with a wind-tunnel balance. The results show that the effect at the largest yaw angle (9 degrees) can give a drag reduction of about 20% and that it results in a net power reduction. At lower yaw angles the reduction was smaller. The present results were obtained at a lower Reynolds number and a lower speed than for real driving conditions so it is still not yet confirmed if a similar positive result can be obtained in full scale.     

横摆角下汽车尾部湍流特征量的PIV试验分析

汽车尾部湍流场是汽车压差阻力的主要来源,在HD-2汽车模型风洞中,首先使用测力天平和测压系统,对横摆角工况下汽车模型的气动六分力和纵对称截面48个测点的表面压力进行了测量,然后利用PIV测量技术对模型在横摆角分别为0°、15°的尾部湍流场进行了测量,获得该模型尾流场的速度场、涡量场和雷诺应力流场信息,通过计算得出尾流场区域空间相关系数和湍流积分尺度。结果表明:在横摆角工况下,汽车模型尾部涡流的结构呈现向上发展的趋势;尾流场拖拽涡的范围和强度的增大导致了模型气动力出现较大的增加;湍流积分尺度的变化表明,尾部涡流区的分离噪声与涡流分离位置有关,在汽车尾部造型设计中,要尽量推迟尾部涡流的分离。     

Effect of multiple DBD plasma actuators on the tip leakage flow structure and loss of a turbine cascade

In this paper, the effects of multiple dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuators on the leakage flow structures and loss conditions have been numerically studied in an axial turbine cascade. Kriging surrogate model is adopted to obtain the optimal cases. The physical mechanism of flow structures inside the gap that control leakage flow is presented, which is obtained by analyzing the flow topology, the evolution of the flow structures and its influence on the secondary velocity and loss conditions in the passage as well. The results show that the induced vortex caused by DBD actuators can change the leakage flow direction inside the tip gap and make the separation bubble break earlier, leading to a new type of the flow pattern. When the actuators are applied, the speed of leakage flow is significantly reduced and the angle between leakage flow and main flow has an obviously diminution, causing the reduction of mixing losses in the passage compared with the Baseline case. Furthermore, the comparison of secondary velocity shows that the tip leakage vortex (TLV) approaches the suction surface, resulting in reduced affected area and weakened loss strength. Plasma actuators can diminish the loss coefficient in both TLV and passage vortex near the casing (PVC) zones. The actuators arranged near the trailing edge mainly affect the strength of TLV, while the actuators in the leading edge area contribute to the loss reduction in the zone of PVC.     

Sensitivity of an asymmetric 3D diffuser to vortex-generator induced inlet condition perturbations

Modifications of the turbulent separated flow in an asymmetric three-dimensional diffuser due to inlet condition perturbations were investigated using conventional static pressure measurements and velocity data acquired using magnetic resonance velocimetry (MRV). Previous experiments and simulations revealed a strong sensitivity of the diffuser performance to weak secondary flows in the inlet. The present, more detailed experiments were conducted to obtain a better understanding of this sensitivity. Pressure data were acquired in an airflow apparatus at an inlet Reynolds number of 10,000. The diffuser pressure recovery was strongly affected by a pair of longitudinal vortices injected along one wall of the inlet channel using either dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators or conventional half-delta wing vortex generators. MRV measurements were obtained in a water flow apparatus at matched Reynolds number for two different cases with passive vortex generators. The first case had a pair of counter-rotating longitudinal vortices embedded in the boundary layer near the center of the expanding wall of the diffuser such that the flow on the outsides of the vortices was directed toward the wall. The MRV data showed that the three-dimensional separation bubble initially grew much slower causing a rapid early reduction in the core flow velocity and a consequent reduction of total pressure losses due to turbulent mixing. This produced a 13% increase in the overall pressure recovery. For the second case, the vortices rotated in the opposite sense, and the image vortices pushed them into the corners. This led to a very rapid initial growth of the separation bubble and formation of strong swirl at the diffuser exit. These changes resulted in a 17% reduction in the overall pressure recovery for this case. The results emphasize the extreme sensitivity of 3D separated flows to weak perturbations.     

Transient phenomena in separation control over a NACA 0015 airfoil

We present the transient phenomena occurring during the impulsive control of flow separation over a NACA0015 airfoil at an incidence angle of 11° and a chord Reynolds number of 1 million. Actuation is performed via pneumatic vortex generators, impulsively activated in order to analyze the transient phenomena corresponding to the attachment process and, conversely, to transient re-separation occurring when the actuators are switched off. Measurements are performed using a linear array of unsteady pressure transducers and a single traversing crosswire. The pressure transducers are positioned in the separated region of the airfoil, which extends ∼ 0.3c upstream of the trailing edge at the above flow condition. To control the flow, the angled fluidic vortex generators are positioned in a single spanwise array located 0.3c downstream of the leading edge of the airfoil. We establish a statistical relationship between pressure and velocity signals during both the uncontrolled steady state and the transient processes of attachment and separation. The unsteady behavior of the attachment process is also qualitatively analyzed via a 0.3 million Reynold number visualizations. The emission of a “starting vortex” is evidenced. This corresponds to a transient increase of drag.     

Experimental study on aerodynamic coefficients of yawed cylinders

This paper presents wind tunnel tests on a stationary cylinder inclined with the flow. The cylinder was positioned at different sets of yaw and vertical angles. The flow regime of the tests remained in the subcritical state. Two load cells were designed and installed to measure the aerodynamic forces, with enough sensitivity to measure vortex shedding frequencies. In this paper, the three aerodynamic force coefficients are normalized using the free stream velocity instead of its normal component. The results show that the drag coefficient and the resultant of the lift and side forces coefficients can be described by an empirical function of the incidence angle. The lift and side force coefficients remain however functions of both the horizontal yaw and vertical angles and cannot be expressed as functions of the incidence angle only. The Independence Principle was observed to become inaccurate for yaw angles larger than 40°. However, the measured Strouhal numbers indicate that the vortex shedding frequencies of a yawed cylinder can be predicted using the Independence Principle.     

The Flow Structure Produced by Pulsed-jet Vortex Generators in a Turbulent Boundary Layer in an Adverse Pressure Gradient

The effect of pulsed jet vortex generators on the structure of an adverse pressure gradient turbulent boundary layer flow was investigated. Two geometrically optimised vortex generator configurations were used, co-rotating and counter-rotating. The duty cycle and pulse frequency were both varied and measurements of the skin friction (using hot films) and flow structure (using stereo PIV) were performed downstream of the actuators. The augmentation of the mean wall shear stress was found to be dependent on the net mass flow injected by the actuators. A quasi steady flow structure was found to develop far downstream of the injection location for the highest pulse frequency tested. The actuator near field flow structure was observed to respond very quickly to variations in the jet exit velocity.     

On the generation of yawing moment using active flow control

The generation of control moments without moving control surfaces is of great practical importance. Following a successful flight demonstration of creating roll motion without ailerons using differential, lift oriented, flow control the current study is a first step towards generating yawing motion via differential flow controlled drag.A wind tunnel study was conducted on a 21% thick Glauert type airfoil. The upper surface flow is partially separated from the two-thirds chord location and downstream on this airfoil at all incidence angles. An array of mass-less Piezo-fluidic actuators, located at x/c = 0.65, are capable of fully reattaching the flow in a gradual, controlled manner. The actuators are individually operated such that the boundary layer could be controlled in a 3D fashion.Several concepts for creating yaw motion without moving control surface are examined. The ultimate goal is to generate the same lift on both wings, while decreasing the drag on one wing and increasing the drag on the other, therefore creating a yawing moment. Decreased drag is created by effective part-span separation delay while increased drag can be created by enhanced generation of vortex shedding or by highly localized 3D actuation.Detailed measurements of 3D surface pressure distributions and wake data with three velocity and streamwise vorticity components are presented and discussed along with surface flow visualization images. The data provide evidence that yawing moments can be generated with AFC.     

A DPIV study of the trailing vortex elements from the blades of a horizontal axis wind turbine in yaw

Digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV) has been used in a wind tunnel study to measure the velocity field of the trailing vortices from the blades of a horizontal axis wind-turbine (HWAT) in yaw. The creation of the trailing vortex circulation is shown to vary as a function of the phase angle of the rotor and the angle of yaw between the wind and turbine rotor. The strength of the convecting vorticity was also shown to vary with time. The initial formation of the vortex is shown determined by the flow expansion angle while in yawed flows the developing vortex is then influenced by the vortex sheet shed from the inboard blade trailing edge. This interaction is shown to significantly affect the roll up of the tip vortex. Received: 17 December 1997/Accepted: 16 June 1999     

Investigation of turbulent flow past a yawed wavy cylinder

A large eddy simulation (LES) study was conducted to investigate the three-dimensional characteristics of the turbulent flow past wavy cylinders with yaw angles from 0° to 60° at a subcritical Reynolds number of 3900. The relationships between force coefficients and vortex shedding frequency with yaw angles for both wavy cylinders and circular cylinders were investigated. Experimental measurements were also performed for the validation of the present LES results. Comparing with corresponding yawed circular cylinders at similar Reynolds number, significant differences in wake vortex patterns between wavy cylinder and circular cylinder were observed at small yaw angles. The difference in wake pattern becomes insignificant at large yaw angles. The mean drag coefficient and the Strouhal number obey the independence principle for circular cylinders at yaw angle less than 45°, while the independence principle was found to be unsuitable for yawed wavy cylinders. In general, the mean drag coefficients and the fluctuating lift coefficients of a yawed wavy cylinder are less than those of a corresponding yawed circular cylinder at the same flow condition. However, with the increase of the yaw angle, the advantageous effect of wavy cylinder on force and vibration control becomes insignificant.     

Large Eddy Simulation of Flow Control Around a Cube Subjected to Momentum Injection

The concept of Momentum Injection (MI) through Moving Surface Boundary layer Control (MSBC) applied to a cubic structure is numerically studied using Large Eddy Simulation at a Reynolds number of 6.7×10⁴. Two small rotating cylinders are used to add the momentum at the front vertical edges of the cube. Two configurations are studied with the yaw angle of 0° and 30°, respectively, with ratio of the rotation velocity of cylinders and the freestream velocity of 2. The results suggest that MI delays the boundary layer separation and reattachment, and thus reduces the drag. A drag reduction of about 6.2 % is observed in the 0° yaw angle case and about 44.1 % reduction in the 30° yaw angle case. In the case of 0° yaw angle, the main change of the flow field is the disappearance of the separation regions near the rotating cylinders and the wake region is slightly changed due to MI. In the 30° yaw angle case, the flow field is changed a lot. Large flow separations near one rotating cylinder and in the wake is significantly reduced, which results in the large drag reduction. Meanwhile, the yaw moment is increased about 50.5 %.     

等离子体激励器控制圆柱绕流的实验研究

为了发展新型移动附面层控制技术,提升流动控制效率,采用粒子图像测速技术,开展了基于对称布局等离子体气动激励的圆柱绕流控制研究,获得了静止空气下,对称布局激励器诱导流场的演化过程,评估了来流条件下等离子体控制效果,通过等离子体诱导涡实现了虚拟移动附面层控制,分析了诱导涡随时间演化的过程,揭示了圆柱绕流等离子体控制机理.结果表明:(1)在静止空气下,对称布局激励器在刚启动瞬间,会在暴露电极两侧诱导产生一对旋转方向相反的启动涡;随着时间的推移,启动涡逐渐向远离壁面的方向运动;随后,激励器在暴露电极两侧产生了两股速度近似相等,方向相反的诱导射流,诱导射流在柯恩达效应的影响下,朝壁面方向发展.(2)当激励电压峰峰值为19.6 kV,激励频率3kHz时,施加等离子体气动激励后,圆柱脱落涡得到了较好抑制,圆柱阻力系数减小了21.8％;(3)在来流作用下,对称布局激励器在靠近来流一侧,诱导产生了较为稳定的涡结构.诱导涡通过旋转、运动,促进了壁面附近低能气流与主流之间的掺混,抑制了圆柱绕流流场分离,实现了"虚拟移动附面层控制"效果.与传统移动附面层控制技术相比,基于等离子体气动激励的新型移动附面层控制技术不需要复杂、笨重的机构,不会带来额外的阻力,具有潜在的应用前景.      

Vortex structure of separated flows on model wings at low freestream velocities

Flow past model wings is experimentally investigated in a subsonic wind tunnel at large angles of attack at which the laminar boundary layer separates near the leading edge of the wing (flow stall). The object of the study was the flow structure within the separation zone. The carbon-oil visualization of surface streamlines used in the experiments showed that in the separation zone there exist one or more pairs of large-scale vortices rotating in the wing plane. Certain general properties of the vortex structures in the separation zone are found to exist, whereas the flow patterns may differ depending on the model aspect ratio, the yaw angle, and other factors.     

On the Vortex Dynamic of Airflow Reattachment Forced by a Single Non-thermal Plasma Discharge Actuator

Commercial and military aircrafts or miniature aerial vehicles can suffer from massive flow separation when high angles of attack are required. Single dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) actuators have demonstrated their capability of controlling such a separated flow at low external velocity. However, the processes resulting in the improvement of the flight performances remain unclear. In the present study, the reattachment process along the suction side of a NACA 0015 placed at an angle of attack of 16° is experimentally investigated for an external velocity of 20 m/s (Re = 260,000). A single DBD actuator is mounted at the leading edge of the model. The velocity fields above the suction side of the airfoil are measured by a high-speed acquisition system (3 kHz). The results indicate that the baseline flow presents shed vortices that form at the leading edge and linearly grow along the free shear layer axis. This vortex shedding is organized and exhibits a specific frequency of about 90 Hz. The continuous actuation produces a partial flow reattachment up to 70% of the chord length. Temporal cross-correlation function indicates the presence of a vortex shedding at the trailing edge of the controlled flow. Finally, the temporal analysis demonstrates that the reattachment process requires 50 ms to reach a stabilized attached flow. The time-resolved analysis of the reattachment suggests that the actuation by plasma discharge acts as a catalyser by reinforcing one of the coherent flow structures already existing in the natural flow.     

An inclined rectangular jet in a turbulent boundary layer-vortex flow

A model test study was performed on streamwise vortices generated by a rectangular jet in an otherwise flat-plate turbulent boundary layer. The study was conducted in a low speed wind tunnel. The rectangular jet had a cross-section size of 28 mm by 5.5 mm. The oncoming boundary layer had a 99.5 percent thickness of 25 mm. The freestream speed of the oncoming flow was 20 m/s. Measurements were performed with a three-element LDA system. The effects of skew angle and streamwise development of vortex were investigated and the mean flow properties are presented. The study showed that the rectangular jet was able to produce a streamwise vortex of higher strength than that of a round jet, while at the same time keeping the same size and shape as that of a round jet. A 63% increase in the maximum vorticity was found. The 45^∘ skew angle was identified as the optimal skew angle for vortex production. Received: 24 June 1998/ Accepted: 21 May 1999     

均匀、振荡及组合流绕平板流动的尾迹研究

本文利用离散涡模型及改进的新生涡产生机制对三种不同来流绕平板的近尾迹进行数值研究。计算讨论了定常流中平板绕流流动的总体特性和近尾迹流场;对于简谐振荡来流,相应于K_c=2.0、4.0 和10.0 分别得到两种不同的尾迹形态。给出了小 K_c 数平板尾迹涡配对、运动的新模式而相应的阻力、惯性力系数计算比以前涡模拟结果更接近于 U 型管实验结果。对于流向组合来流本文模拟了涡锁定及其动力特性并于实验相符,给出了流向扰动对平板绕流流动的影响。     

Drag and lift reduction of a 3D bluff-body using active vortex generators

In this study, a passive flow control experiment on a 3D bluff-body using vortex generators (VGs) is presented. The bluff-body is a modified Ahmed body (Ahmed in J Fluids Eng 105:429–434 1983) with a curved rear part, instead of a slanted one, so that the location of the flow separation is no longer forced by the geometry. The influence of a line of non-conventional trapezoïdal VGs on the aerodynamic forces (drag and lift) induced on the bluff-body is investigated. The high sensitivity to many geometric (angle between the trapezoïdal element and the wall, spanwise spacing between the VGs, longitudinal location on the curved surface) and physical (freestream velocity) parameters is clearly demonstrated. The maximum drag reduction is ?12%, while the maximum global lift reduction can reach more than ?60%, with a strong dependency on the freestream velocity. For some configurations, the lift on the rear axle of the model can be inverted (?104%). It is also shown that the VGs are still efficient even downstream of the natural separation line. Finally, a dynamic parameter is chosen and a new set-up with motorized vortex generators is proposed. Thanks to this active device. The optimal configurations depending on two parameters are found more easily, and a significant drag and lift reduction (up to ?14% drag reduction) can be reached for different freestream velocities. These results are then analyzed through wall pressure and velocity measurements in the near-wake of the bluff-body with and without control. It appears that the largest drag and lift reduction is clearly associated to a strong increase of the size of the recirculation bubble over the rear slant. Investigation of the velocity field in a cross-section downstream the model reveals that, in the same time, the intensity of the longitudinal trailing vortices is strongly reduced, suggesting that the drag reduction is due to the breakdown of the balance between the separation bubble and the longitudinal vortices. It demonstrates that for low aspect ratio 3D bluff-bodies, like road vehicles, the flow control strategy is much different from the one used on airfoils: an early separation of the boundary layer can lead to a significant drag reduction if the circulation of the trailing vortices is reduced.     

Mean lift generation on cylinders induced with plasma actuators

Bluff body flow control based on plasma actuators requires suitable strategies to attain the desired objectives. The strategy selection becomes more critical in situations where the free airstream velocity is much higher than the maximum velocity that can be produced by the flow control device. In this work, we report recent efforts to produce on a circular cylinder forces in direction transverse to the free flow. Free stream velocities considered in this work are as high as 45 m/s ((Re(O) 1 × 10⁵), which result much higher values than the maximum velocities (about 5 m/s) usually induced by the kind of plasma actuator here considered (dielectric barrier type). Our strategy consisted on promoting asymmetries on boundary layer separation with a four electrode arrangement. In our experiments, we measured drag and lift forces and explored the effect of exciting the flow with steady and non-steady actuations. The device demonstrated authority to induce significant transverse forces and optimal frequencies resulted in all cases close to the vortex shedding frequency.     

基于分布式合成双射流的飞行器无舵面三轴姿态控制飞行试验

将自主可控的合成双射流激励器集成于常规布局飞行器中, 进行了三轴无舵面控制飞行试验, 验证了分布式合成双射流对飞行器巡航时的无舵面姿态调控能力. 对合成双射流激励器进行改进, 设计了分布式三轴姿态控制合成双射流激励器, 滚转环量控制激励器分别安装于两侧机翼翼尖处后缘, 射流出口靠近压力面; 偏航反向合成双射流控制激励器分别安装于靠近两侧机翼翼尖20%弦长处, 上、下沿展向均匀布置; 俯仰环量控制激励器安装于V尾下的平尾后缘, 射流出口靠近压力面. 针对巡航速度为30 m/s的飞行器, 进行了三轴姿态控制飞行试验, 结果表明: 分布式合成双射流实现了飞行器巡航时的三轴无舵面姿态操控; 横航向控制存在耦合, 滚转环量控制激励器实现了飞行器的双向滚转操控, 能产生的最大滚转角速度达16.87°/s, 偏航反向合成双射流控制激励器实现了飞行器的双向偏航操控, 能产生的最大偏航角速度达9.09°/s; 俯仰环量控制激励器实现了飞行器的纵向控制, 能产生的最大俯仰角速度达7.68°/s.