Aerodynamic performance enhancement of a flying wing using nanosecond pulsed DBD plasma actuator

Experimental investigation of aerodynamic control on a 35° swept flying wing by means of nanosecond dielectric barrier discharge (NS-DBD) plasma was carried out at subsonic flow speed of 20–40 m/s, corresponding to Reynolds number of 3.1 × 105–6.2 × 105. In control condition, the plasma actuator was installed symmetrically on the leading edge of the wing. Lift coefficient, drag coefficient, lift-to-drag ratio and pitching moment coefficient were tested with and without control for a range of angles of attack. The tested results indicate that an increase of 14.5% in maximum lift coefficient, a decrease of 34.2% in drag coefficient, an increase of 22.4% in maximum lift-to-drag ratio and an increase of 2° at stall angle of attack could be achieved compared with the baseline case. The effects of pulsed frequency, amplitude and chord Reynolds number were also investigated. And the results revealed that control efficiency demonstrated strong dependence on pulsed frequency. Moreover, the results of pitching moment coefficient indicated that the breakdown of leading edge vortices could be delayed by plasma actuator at low pulsed frequencies.