The main focus of the review is on dynamics and kinetics of near-surface discharge plasmas, such as surface dielectric barrier discharges sustained by AC and repetitively pulsed waveforms, pulsed DC discharges, and quasi-DC discharges, generated in quiescent air and in the airflow. A number of technical issues related to plasma flow control applications are discussed in detail, including discharge development via surface ionization waves, charge transport and accumulation on dielectric surface, discharge contraction, different types of flow perturbations generated by surface discharges, and effect of high-speed flow on discharge dynamics. In the first part of the manuscript, plasma morphology and results of electrical and optical emission spectroscopy measurements are discussed. Particular attention is paid to dynamics of surface charge accumulation and dissipation, both in diffuse discharges and during development of ionization instabilities resulting in discharge contraction. Contraction leads to significant increase of both the surface area of charge accumulation and the energy coupled to the plasma. The use of alternating polarity pulse waveforms accelerates contraction of surface dielectric barrier discharges and formation of filamentary plasmas. The second part discusses the interaction of discharge plasmas with quiescent air and the external airflow. Four major types of flow perturbations have been identified: (1) low-speed near-surface jets generated by electrohydrodynamic interaction (ion wind); (2) spanwise and streamwise vortices formed by both electrohydrodynamic and thermal effects; (3) weak shock waves produced by rapid heating in pulsed discharges on sub-microsecond time scale; and (4) nearsurface localized stochastic perturbations, on sub-millisecond time, detected only recently. The mechanism of plasma-flow interaction remains not fully understood, especially in filamentary surface dielectric barrier discharges. Localized quasi-DC surface discharges sustained in a high-speed flow are discussed in the third part of the review. Although dynamics of this type of the discharge is highly transient, due to its strong interaction with the flow, the resultant flow structure is stationary, including the oblique shock and the flow separation region downstream of the discharge. The oblique shock is attached to a time-averaged, wedge-shaped, near-wall plasma layer, with the shock angle controlled by the discharge power, which makes possible changing the flow structure and parameters in a controlled way. Finally, unresolved and openended issues are discussed in the summary.

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The suitability of the electrical discharge technique for application in plasma-induced ignition and plasma-assisted combustion in high-speed flow is reviewed. Nonequilibrium, unsteady and nonuniform modes are under analysis to demonstrate the advantage of such a technique over heating. A reduction in the required power deposition is possible due to unsteady operation and non-homogeneous spatial distribution. Mixing intensification in non-premixed flow could be achieved by nonuniform electrical discharges. The scheme of fuel ignition behind the wallstep and in the cavity is under consideration. Experimental results on multi-electrode discharge maintenance in the separation zone of supersonic flow are presented. The model test on hydrogen and ethylene ignition is demonstrated at direct fuel injection. An energetic threshold of fuel ignition under separation and in the shear layer is measured under the experimental conditions.

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Surface ionization wave discharges generated by high-voltage nanosecond pulses, propagating over a planar quartz surface and over liquid surfaces (distilled water and 1-butanol) have been studied in a rectangular cross section test cell. The discharge was initiated using a custom-made, alternating polarity, high-voltage nanosecond pulse plasma generator, operated at a pulse repetition rate of 100-500 Hz, with a pulse peak voltage and current of 10-15 kV and 7-20 A, respectively, a pulse FWHM of ∼100 ns, and a coupled pulse energy of 2-9 mJ/pulse. Wave speed was measured using a capacitive probe. ICCD camera images demonstrated that the ionization wave propagated predominantly over the quartz wall or over the liquid surface adjacent to the grounded waveguide placed along the bottom wall of the test cell. Under all experimental conditions tested, the surface plasma 'sheet' was diffuse and fairly uniform, both for positive and negative polarities. The parameters of ionization wave discharge propagating over distilled water and 1-butanol surfaces were close to those of the discharge over a quartz wall. No perturbation of the liquid surface by the discharge was detected. In most cases, the positive polarity surface ionization wave propagated at a higher speed and over a longer distance compared to the negative polarity wave. For all three sets of experiments (surface ionization wave discharge over quartz, water and 1-butanol), wave speed and travel distance decreased with pressure. Diffuse, highly reproducible surface ionization wave discharge was also observed over the liquid butanol-saturated butanol vapor interface, as well as over the distilled water-saturated water vapor interface, without buffer gas flow. No significant difference was detected between surface ionization discharges sustained using single-polarity (positive or negative), or alternating polarity high-voltage pulses. Plasma emission images yielded preliminary evidence of charge removal from the liquid surface between the pulses on a microsecond time scale. Products of the plasma chemical reaction that accumulated in the ionization wave discharge over the liquid butanol-saturated butanol vapor interface were detected ex situ, using FTIR absorption spectroscopy. Reaction products identified include CO, alkanes (CH 4, C 2 H 6 , C 3 H 8 ), alkynes (C 2 H 2 ), aldehydes (CH 2 O) and lighter alcohols (CH 3 OH).

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