Direct measurements of the dielectric surface potential and its dynamics in asymmetric dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuators show that the charge builds up at the dielectric surface and extends far downstream of the plasma. The surface charge persists for a long time (tens of minutes) after the driving voltage has been turned off. For a sinusoidal voltage waveform, the dielectric surface charges positively. With the voltage waveform consisting of nanosecond pulses superimposed on a dc bias, the sign of the dielectric surface charge is the same as the sign (polarity) of the bias voltage. The surface charging significantly affects DBD plasma actuator performance.
Experimental studies were conducted of a flow induced in an initially quiescent room air by a single asymmetric dielectric barrier discharge driven by voltage waveforms consisting of repetitive nanosecond high-voltage pulses superimposed on dc or alternating sinusoidal or square-wave bias voltage. To characterize the pulses and to optimize their matching to the plasma, a numerical code for short pulse calculations with an arbitrary impedance load was developed. A new approach for nonintrusive diagnostics of plasma actuator induced flows in quiescent gas was proposed, consisting of three elements coupled together: the schlieren technique, burst mode of plasma actuator operation, and two-dimensional numerical fluid modeling. The force and heating rate calculated by a plasma model was used as an input to two-dimensional viscous flow solver to predict the time-dependent dielectric barrier discharge induced flow field. This approach allowed us to restore the entire two-dimensional unsteady plasma induced flow pattern as well as characteristics of the plasma induced force. Both the experiments and computations showed the same vortex flow structures induced by the actuator. Parametric studies of the vortices at different bias voltages, pulse polarities, peak pulse voltages, and pulse repetition rates were conducted experimentally. The significance of charge buildup on the dielectric surface was demonstrated. The charge buildup decreases the effective electric field in the plasma and reduces the plasma actuator performance. The accumulated surface charge can be removed by switching the bias polarity, which leads to a newly proposed voltage waveform consisting of high-voltage nanosecond repetitive pulses superimposed on a high-voltage low frequency sinusoidal voltage. Advantages of the new voltage waveform were demonstrated experimentally.
A detailed physical model for asymmetric dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) in air at low voltages (1.5–2 kV) is developed. Modeling of DBD with an applied sinusoidal voltage is carried out in two dimensions. The leading role of charging the dielectric surface by electrons in the cathode phase is shown to be critical, acting as a harpoon that pulls positive ions forward and accelerates the gas in the anode phase. The positive ion motion back toward the exposed electrode is shown to be a major source of inefficiency in the sinusoidal or near-sinusoidal voltage cases. Based on understanding of the DBD physics, an optimal voltage waveform is proposed, consisting of high repetition rate, short (a few nanoseconds in duration), negative pulses combined with a positive dc bias applied to the exposed electrode.
A detailed physical model for an asymmetric dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) in air driven by repetitive nanosecond voltage pulses is developed. In particular, modeling of DBD with high voltage repetitive negative and positive nanosecond pulses combined with positive dc bias is carried out. Operation at high voltage is compared with operation at low voltage, highlighting the advantage of high voltages, however the effect of backward-directed breakdown in the case of negative pulses results in a decrease of the integral momentum transferred to the gas. The use of positive repetitive pulses with dc bias is demonstrated to be promising for DBD performance improvement. The effects of the voltage waveform not only on force magnitude, but also on the spatial profile of the force, are shown. The crucial role of background photoionization in numerical modeling of ionization waves (streamers) in DBD plasmas is demonstrated.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.