Numerical investigation of an electroaerodynamic driven aeroplane: electrical properties, ionic wind and flight performance

Abstract

The propellers and turbines used in aeroplanes are typically powered by fossil-fuel combustion. Recently, Xu et al (2018 Nature 563 532–5) demonstrated a successful flight of an aeroplane using ionic-wind propulsion, which does not require combustion or moving parts. The ionic wind phenomenon induced by electrical discharges has been revealed since 17th century, but it was the first practical example of the so called solid-state propulsion. The detailed capabilities of such ionic wind based or electroaerodynamic driven aeroplanes have aroused the interest of both researchers and industries, detailed modeling works are required for deeper insights. In this paper, a 2D unipolar ion drift model coupled with Navier–Stokes equations is developed and validated by experiments. The electric field, space charge distribution, ionic wind velocity and body force are obtained. The flight velocity, the lift and distance of the ionic wind based aeroplane in the experiment and in an extreme case are analyzed theoretically based on the modeling results. The results show that the performance of an ionic wind based aeroplane depends on the matching between electrical parameters (discharge geometry, voltage, etc), flight parameters (initial velocity, weight control, airfoil, wingspan, etc) and power storage (battery storage, battery weight, etc).

Numerical study of ElectroAeroDynamic force and current resulting from ionic wind in emitter/collector systems

“…As in many other contributions, [20,21,18,9] we omit the description of the corona discharge, and only use effective boundary conditions applied at a circle Γ corresponding to the outer bound of the corona discharge region. Noting V the tension applied between the electrodes, we will consider the following boundary conditions at surface Γ for emitter and surface ∂Ω c for collector: [22,20,18,9]) is to consider that an imposed electric field independent of the applied potential difference holds nearby the emitter. This Kaptzov hypothesis has been recently theoretically justified and asymptotically holds for axi-symmetrical configuration [23].…”

“…In the considered range of electric field E (from 1.10 6 to 1.10 7 V /m) it reduces from about 2.10 −4 down to 5.10 −5 m 2 V −1 s −1 . In the present contribution we have kept a constant mobility as a first approximation, as done in many other contributions [14,15,16,17,18,19,9]. Rather than trying to adjust this parameter to fit each experimental dataset, we prefer to adopt an intermediate value for all cases.…”

“…The interest of numerical modeling in this new aerodynamic propulsion domain results from its capability of exploring many geometries so as to guide and improve better propulsive performances. Furthermore, in order to design the best architectures for these new propulsive systems, there is a need for reliable numerical predictions [14,15,16,17,18,19,9]. Previous numerical studies were most often performed with commercial codes [14,15,16,18,19,9].…”

“…Furthermore, in order to design the best architectures for these new propulsive systems, there is a need for reliable numerical predictions [14,15,16,17,18,19,9]. Previous numerical studies were most often performed with commercial codes [14,15,16,18,19,9]. Nevertheless, the number of numerical studies and their cross validation with experiments are scarce in the area because of various difficulties : finite size effects, influence of poorly defined boundary conditions, convergence difficulties in large domains, modeling issues associated with various phenomena such as corona discharge, turbulence modeling,... Few numerical predictions have been compared with experimental measurements in the very same configurations, as in [?, 9], in order to assess and analyse the modeling predictability and limitations.…”

Recent Progress in Artificial Muscles for Interactive Soft Robotics

“…The EAD process is a promising alternative for the propelling systems in aerial vehicles with its simple and lightweight architecture, silent operation, and no requirement of moving components. [91][92][93][97][98][99] Xu et al has recently demonstrated an electrical solid-state propelling system with the EAD process, [94] which was consisted of an asymmetric electrode pair (one small electrode for ionization of the air and one large electrode for ion collection, as shown in Figure 2d). The EAD engine provided a thrust-to-power ratio of 5 N kW -1 , comparable to the conventional jet engine (3 N kW -1 ), which could be used to achieve a 40-50 m flight within 8-9 s on a fixed-wing aeroplane (Figure 2e).…”