Aerodynamic performance enhancements using discharge plasma actuators
OwnerDavid Greenblattinventor
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Abstract
The current invention provides significant performance improvements or significant energy savings for fans used in these applications: personal, industrial and automotive cooling, ventilation, vacuuming and dust removal, inflating, computer component cooling, propulsors for unmanned and manned air vehicles, propulsors for airboats, air-cushion vehicles, airships and model aircraft. Additionally, the invention provides higher performance such as higher lift and higher lift efficiency to small air vehicles. These advantages are achieved by using plasma actuators to provide active flow control effectors into thin fan blades and wing.
Claims24
A fan system comprising:
- at least one fan blade;
- and
- at least one plasma actuator mounted on said at least one fan blade, wherein the plasma actuator is a dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuator;
- wherein the plasma actuator is driven in pulsed mode and pulsing of said plasma actuator is at a reduced frequency F+ between 0.2 and 2, wherein F+ is defined as the product of the pulsed frequency and of the distance from the actuator to a trailing edge of the fan blade, and divided by the relative blade velocity.
A method for enhancing performance of a rotating wing system comprising the steps of:
- providing electrical power to a rotating part of said rotating wing system;
- actuating plasma actuators installed on said rotating wings;
- and
- pulsing said plasma actuators at a reduced frequency F+ between 0.2 and 2;
- wherein the plasma actuators are dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators, and wherein F+ is defined as the product of the pulsed frequency and of the distance from the actuator to a trailing edge of the fan blade, and divided by the relative blade velocity.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.