Investigation of micro-jet active control of a precessing jet using PIV

A circular jet entering an open-ended concentric circular chamber can rotate or precess about the jet axis for certain flow conditions and chamber configurations. Active flow control of a precessing jet provides the ability to influence the flow field inside the chamber and the resulting flow after the chamber exit. Twelve micro-jets surrounding the jet at the chamber inlet are used as actuation. At the chamber exit, four pressure probes and three-component velocity measurement using stereo particle image velocimetry (stereo-PIV) is used to monitor the flow. A phase plane method using signals from the pressure sensors is developed to monitor the location of the jet high-velocity region in real-time. Phase-locked stereo-PIV, triggered by the micro-jet actuation signal, is used to investigate the flow field and validate the pressure phase plane results. The effectiveness of the micro-jet actuation and the validation of the pressure phase plane measurements demonstrate actuation and the sensing needed for future closed-loop control of the precessing jet.     

Experimental and numerical investigation on the flow field within a compact inlet duct

A combined experimental and numerical investigation of the flow field in a short, rectangular, diffusing S-shape inlet duct was conducted. The inlet duct had a length-to-hydraulic diameter ratio of 1.5 and an inflow Mach number of 0.44. The flow field was diagnosed utilizing stereoscopic particle image velocimetry, surface static pressure measurements, and high frequency total pressure measurements both on the lower surface and at the duct’s aerodynamic interface plane. To complement the experimental investigation and to aid in understanding the flow field associated with this complex geometry, a numerical flow simulation was undertaken. The flow field exhibited massive flow separations and shear layer formations at both turns of the compact inlet. Moreover, secondary flow structures along the duct’s lower surface and along the duct’s side walls were identified. It was shown that the two counter-rotating flow structures along the duct’s lower surface resulted in high levels of total pressure loss at the aerodynamic interface plane. A high fidelity spectral analysis of the pressure signals at the aerodynamic interface plane and along the lower surface was conducted and demonstrated that a high frequency surface static pressure sensor could identify flow separation in a non-intrusive fashion, allowing for future use in a closed-loop control scheme for active flow control. This work was part of a more comprehensive study which was to utilize active flow control to improve performance metrics of such compact inlets.     

Velocity distributions in a hydrocyclone separator

 The internal three-dimensional flow field in a hydrocyclone was studied using laser velocimetry. Seven axial planes were investigated for three different inlet flow rates and three independent and different rejects rates. Results at each measurement plane showed that the measured tangential velocity profile behaves like a forced vortex at the region near the air core, and like a free vortex in the outer portion of the flow. The peak nondimensional tangential velocity decreases as the distance from the inlet region increases, however, the peak dimensional tangential velocity increases as the distance from the inlet region increases. The nondimensional peak tangential velocities are approximately equal for all of the flow rates. The magnitude of the tangential velocity increased in the inner forced vortex region as the rejects rate was increased. Backflows exist in the axial velocity profile near the inlet region, but these reversed flows disappear in the exit region. The dimensional vorticity is proportional to inlet flow rate and decreases with increasing rejects flow rates. Received: 27 February 2001/Accepted: 19 June 2001     

Reducing the pressure drag of a D-shaped bluff body using linear feedback control

The pressure drag of blunt bluff bodies is highly relevant in many practical applications, including to the aerodynamic drag of road vehicles. This paper presents theory revealing that a mean drag reduction can be achieved by manipulating wake flow fluctuations. A linear feedback control strategy then exploits this idea, targeting attenuation of the spatially integrated base (back face) pressure fluctuations. Large-eddy simulations of the flow over a D-shaped blunt bluff body are used as a test-bed for this control strategy. The flow response to synthetic jet actuation is characterised using system identification, and controller design is via shaping of the frequency response to achieve fluctuation attenuation. The designed controller successfully attenuates integrated base pressure fluctuations, increasing the time-averaged pressure on the body base by 38%. The effect on the flow field is to push the roll-up of vortices further downstream and increase the extent of the recirculation bubble. This control approach uses only body-mounted sensing/actuation and input–output model identification, meaning that it could be applied experimentally.     

Sensitivity of an asymmetric 3D diffuser to plasma-actuator induced inlet condition perturbations

Experiments were conducted for the flow in a straight-walled 3D diffuser fed by a fully developed turbulent duct flow. Previous work found that this diffuser has a stable 3D separation bubble whose configuration is affected by the secondary flows in the upstream duct. Dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators were used to produce low-momentum wall jets to determine if the separation behavior could be modified by weak forcing. Actuators producing a streamwise force along the wall where separation occurred in the baseline flow had a relatively small effect. However, spanwise acting plasma actuators that produced a pair of streamwise vortices in the inlet section of the diffuser had a strong effect on the diffuser pressure recovery. The diffuser performance could be either improved or degraded depending on the actuation parameters, including the actuator modulation frequency, duty cycle, and drive voltage. Velocity profile measurements in the diffuser inlet showed that the streamwise vortices affect the uniformity of the streamwise mean velocity accounting for some of the performance changes. However, phase-locked hotwire measurements at the diffuser exit indicate that the periodic nature of the forcing also plays an important role for cases with enhanced pressure recovery.     

热激励器对超声速圆管射流的控制机理

采用大涡模拟方法研究了热激励器对马赫1.3 超声速圆管射流涡结构的影响, 采用加入净热源的方法模拟了热激励器的热效应, 分析了不同激励模态(m =±1 和m =±4) 的降噪和增加射流掺混的效果. 研究发现: (1)射流在受到激励作用时, 产生了更大的径向和周向速度扰动, 这有利于流向涡的形成, m =±1 激励模态下流向涡的发展更快, 特别是在摆动面上会有更大的增长速度; (2) 气动噪声分布的频带很宽, 激励作用对抑制高频气动噪声有较强的作用; (3) 对于在喷管壁面处产生的固壁噪声, m =±4 模态下的激励作用一定程度上加强了固壁噪声.      

Control of the corner separation in a compressor cascade by steady and unsteady plasma aerodynamic actuation

This paper reports experimental results on using steady and unsteady plasma aerodynamic actuation to control the corner separation, which forms over the suction surface and end wall corner of a compressor cascade blade passage. Total pressure recovery coefficient distribution was adopted to evaluate the corner separation. Corner separation causes significant total pressure loss even when the angle of attack is 0°. Both steady and unsteady plasma aerodynamic actuations suppress the corner separation effectively. The control effect obtained by the electrode pair at 25% chord length is as effective as that obtained by all four electrode pairs. Increasing the applied voltage improves the control effect while it augments the power requirement. Increasing the Reynolds number or the angle of attack makes the corner separation more difficult to control. The unsteady actuation is much more effective and requires less power due to the coupling between the unsteady actuation and the separated flow. Duty cycle and excitation frequency are key parameters in unsteady plasma flow control. There are thresholds in both the duty cycle and the excitation frequency, above which the control effect saturates. The maximum relative reduction in total pressure loss coefficient achieved is up to 28% at 70% blade span. The obvious difference between steady and unsteady actuation may be that wall jet governs the flow control effect of steady actuation, while much more vortex induced by unsteady actuation is the reason for better control effect.     

Exit-flow velocity survey of two single-tangential-inlet vaneless turbine volutes

The most cited analytical technique for designing turbine volutes is to assume the throughflow is free from torque, although for this assumption to hold, the volute walls must lie near what would be streamlines in an unbounded free vortex-plus-sink flow. The single tangential inlet design, with inlet offset decreased and diameter increased to attain the weak exit swirl required by high specific speed turbines, deviates from such a shape, and the volute’s internal geometry is no longer torque-free. It is desired to know the actual time-averaged flow leaving such a volute, so that a rotor can be designed to compliment it.For two existing single tangential inlet volutes, time-averaged radial and tangential velocity and static pressure measurements of exit flow have been obtained on a cylindrical cut plane through the radial-inflow section using a three-port yawmeter in air. The Reynolds numbers based on inlet pipe mean conditions, around 10⁵, are well into the fully-turbulent regime and on the order of comparable water turbines.A comprehensive map of time-averaged exit flow of both volutes is presented. The integrated values of gross angular momentum flux change and total pressure loss coefficient are tabulated. Circumferential variation of flowrate and swirl strength highlight unexpected differences in outlet flow between the two volute designs. Results are presented alongside corresponding numerical results from the commercial package Fluent (Fluent, Inc., Lebanon, NH, USA) using Reynolds stress, k-ω, and inviscid flow models.In both volutes, measured gross exit angular momentum flux was more than 1.7 times what the zero-torque assumption would predict when blindly applied to the volute as a whole. This discrepancy is attributed to significant turning near the volute’s inlet region leading to an updated view of what an appropriate control volume is when applying the zero-torque assumption. Additionally, variation of both radial and tangential velocity in both the circumferential and axial directions on the order of 15% of the mean value reveal that volute swirl characterization by a single measurement would have a significant associated uncertainty.     

Isothermal velocity and turbulence measurements downstream of a model multilobed turbofan mixer

An isothermal experimental investigation of the three dimensional flow field downstream of a model multilobed turbofan forced mixer is presented. LDA measurements of the three mean velocities and corresponding turbulence intensities were obtained in the downstream duct where the turbine (primary) and fan (secondary) streams emerging from the lobes mix together. The flow development in the near field was quantified by measuring the cross plane velocities. These were found to consist of large radial flows, of order 15% of the mean axial velocities at the lobe inlet, with changing sign depending on location. The cross-plane flow is consistent with a large scale axial vortex pair (per lobe) which persists throughout the downstream duct and enhances mixing in this region. Turbulence generation and anisotropy of the turbulence structure were evident mainly in the shear layers formed as the fan and turbine streams emanated from the lobe trailing edge. Spatial uniformity in the mean and turbulent fields was measured as little as five heights downstream of the mixer exit, indicating the rapid mixing achievable in these systems.     

Active flow control on the 25°Ahmed body using a new unsteady jet

A numerical simulation based on the Large eddy simulation method is carried out on the near wake flow behind a 25° slant angle Ahmed body to analyze and establish a new method to control the near wake flow. An active flow control using a new unsteady jet derived from the traditional synthetic jet is applied to reduce the aerodynamic drag. The control devices are distributed along the separation edges on the rear part of the body. Their effects on the near wake and the rear body by influencing the flow topology and the static pressure distribution are examined respectively. The control frequency of the jet as the key forcing parameter is taken into consideration as well. The different actuation set-ups lead to a max drag reduction of up to 13.6%, which demonstrates a good correlation with the static pressure distribution at the rear end of the body.     

Control of diffuser jet flow: turbulent kinetic energy and jet spreading enhancements assisted by a non-thermal plasma discharge

An axisymmetric air jet exhausting from a 22-degree-angle diffuser is investigated experimentally by particle image velocimetry (PIV) and stereo-PIV measurements. Two opposite dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) actuators are placed along the lips of the diffuser in order to force the mixing by a co-flow actuation. The electrohydrodynamic forces generated by both actuators modify and excite the turbulent shear layer at the diffuser jet exit. Primary air jet velocities from 10 to 40 m/s are studied (Reynolds numbers ranging from 3.2 to 12.8 × 10⁴), and baseline and forced flows are compared by analysing streamwise and cross-stream PIV fields. The mixing enhancement in the near field region is characterized by the potential core length, the centreline turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), the integrated value of the TKE over various slices along the jet, the turbulent Reynolds stresses and the vorticity fields. The time-averaged fields demonstrate that an effective increase in mixing is achieved by a forced flow reattachment along the wall of the diffuser at 10 m/s, whereas mixing enhancement is realized by excitation of the coherent structures for a primary velocity of 20 and 30 m/s. The actuation introduces two pairs of contra-rotating vortices above each actuator. These structures entrain the higher speed core fluid toward the ambient air. Unsteady actuations over Strouhal numbers ranging from 0.08 to 1 are also studied. The results suggest that the excitation at a Strouhal number around 0.3 is more effective to enhance the turbulence kinetic energy in the near-field region for primary jet velocity up to 30 m/s.     

The effect of buoyancy on flow fluctuations for horizontal plane jets in low speed applications

Low speed jets have important applications in chemical process, power and aerospace industries. Velocity fluctuations in low speed laminar jets have been investigated experimentally and theoretically, in the present work. The effects of buoyancy on the mean and fluctuating components of velocity have been highlighted. It is observed that even for forced convection dominated flow, convective instabilities and the resulting local velocity fluctuations are significantly influenced by buoyancy. Both the dominant frequency and the amplitude of velocity fluctuations depend on the jet exit temperature and spatial location within the jet. For isothermal jets, the dominant frequency of oscillation increases almost linearly with Reynolds number, while for buoyant jets nonlinearity exists at lower Reynolds numbers. Numerical simulations of the present study are found to be reasonably successful in predicting the oscillatory behavior of both isothermal and non-isothermal laminar free jets accurately.     

Effect of symmetry and asymmetry of turbulent structures on the interaction region of a plane jet

Mean and rms velocity and temperature measurements are made in the near field of a plane jet for two different sets of conditions at the beginning of the interaction region. In the first, the jet has a nearly top-hat velocity profile and laminar boundary layers at the nozzle exit. Schlieren photography and spectral coherence measurements show that the mixing layer structures are strongly organised and symmetric about the centreline. In the second, the jet issues from a two-dimensional duct with a nearly fully developed velocity profile so that, upstream of the interaction region, turbulent structures should be three-dimensional and asymmetric about the jet centreline. The resulting weak interaction obtained in this case contrasts with the strong interaction measured in the first case.     

Mode spectra of natural disturbances in a circular jet and the effect of acoustic forcing

A modal spectrum technique was used to study coherent instability modes (both axisymmetric and azimuthal) triggered by naturally occurring disturbances in a circular jet. This technique was applied to a high Reynolds number (400,000) jet for both untripped (transitional) and tripped (turbulent) nozzle exit boundary layers, with both cases having a core turbulence level of 0.15%. The region up to the end of the potential core was dominated by the axisymmetric mode, with the azimuthal modes dominating further downstream. The growth of the azimuthal modes was observed closer to the nozzle exit for the jet with a transitional boundary layer. Whether for locally parallel flow or slowly diverging flow, even at low levels of acoustic forcing, the inviscid linear theory is seen to be inadequate for predicting the amplitude of the forced mode. In contrast, the energy integral approach reasonably predicts the evolution of the forced mode.     

Jet flow field during screech

Measurements were made of the flow field structure and the near field parameters of a jet exhausting from a sonic nozzle with a 1.27 cm exit diameter. Compressed air was used for obtaining stagnation pressures up to ～5 atmospheres. The jet exhausted vertically from a settling chamber into an acoustically insulated room and through an insulated duct out through the roof. Measurements were made with several different reflecting surfaces at the nozzle exit as well as an insulating surface. Schlieren pictures at 500,000 frames/s were taken. Overall sound pressure level, impact pressure level downstream, and sound frequency analyzer measurements were made. It was found that with a reflecting surface there was a radial oscillation of the jet which had the same frequency as the dominant sound (screech) frequency emitted by the jet. No axial motion of the inviscid part of the flow structure was detected. The insulated surface at the nozzle exit appeared to shift the dominant frequencies of the sound generated into the region above the audible (>16 KHz). A reflecting surface yielded “pure tones” (screech) with one or two harmonics. The dominant (screech) frequency decreased as the stagnation pressure increased. The screech frequency was found to be approximately inversely proportional to the length of the first shock cell.     

等离子体激励气动力学探索与展望

等离子体激励气动力学是研究等离子体激励与流动相互作用下, 绕流物体受力和流动特性以及管道内部流动规律的科学, 属于空气动力学、气体动力学与等离子体动力学交叉前沿领域. 等离子体激励是等离子体在电磁场力作用下运动或气体放电产生的压力、温度、物性变化, 对气流施加的一种可控扰动. 局域、非定常等离子体激励作用下, 气流运动状态会发生显著变化, 进而实现气动性能的提升. 国际上对介质阻挡放电等离子体激励、等离子体合成射流激励及其调控附面层、分离流动、含激波流动等开展了大量研究. 等离子体激励调控气流呈现显著的频率耦合效应, 等离子体冲击流动控制是提升调控效果的重要途径. 发展高效能等离子体激励方法, 通过等离子体激励与气流耦合, 激发和利用气流不稳定性, 揭示耦合机理、提升调控效果, 是等离子体激励气动力学未来的发展方向.      

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF THREE DIMENSIONAL GAS-PARTICLE FLOW IN A SPIRAL CYCLONE

The three-dimension gas-particle flow in a spiral cyclone is simulated numerically in this paper. The gas flow field was obtained by solving the three-dimension Navier-Stokes equations with Reynolds Stress Model (RSM). It is shown that there are two regions in the cyclone, the steadily tangential flow in the spiral channel and the combined vortex flow in the centre. Numerical results for particles trajectories show that the initial position of the particle at the inlet plane substantially affects its trajectory in the cyclone. The particle collection efficiency curves at different inlet velocities were obtained and the effects of inlet flow rate on the performance of the spiral cyclone were presented. Numerical results also show that the increase of flow rate leads to the increase of particles collection efficiency, but the pressure drop increases sharply.     

Massively separated flows due to transverse sonic jet in laminar hypersonic stream

A numerical simulation of flow interactions due to a transverse sonic jet ejected from a two-dimensional slot into a hypersonic stream is carried out to examine the capability of Navier–Stokes solutions in predicting a massively separated flow upstream of the jet exit. Grid sensitivity has been studied using gradually refined meshes to address the numerical accuracy of the discretised solution of the governing equations. Comparison has been made with published experimental data regarding the separation and reattachment points and the pressure distribution in the separated region. Flow field visualisation provides further insight into the interaction region and reveals a small clockwise vortex immediately ahead of the jet exit, which is found to be responsible for the second peak in the surface pressure distribution. Received 30 June 1998 / Accepted 27 September 1998     

Mean Flow and Turbulence Measurements in a Turbulent Free Cruciform Jet

The results of measurements of all three components of the mean velocity vector, the Reynolds normal and primary shear stresses and the mean static pressure in a turbulent free jet, issuing from a sharp-edged cruciform orifice, are presented in this paper. The measurements were made with an x-array hot-wire probe and a pitot-static tube in the near flow field of the jet. The Reynolds number, based upon the equivalent diameter of the orifice, was 1.70 × 10⁵. In addition to the quantities measured directly, the mean streamwise centreline velocity decay, the jet half-velocity widths, the jet spreading rate, the mean streamwise vorticity, the mass entrainment rate, the integral momentum flux and the one-dimensional energy spectra have been derived from the measured data. The results show that the mean streamwise centreline velocity decay rate of the cruciform jet is higher than that of a round jet issuing from an orifice with the same exit area as that of the cruciform orifice. The mean streamwise velocity field changed shape continuously from a cruciform close to the orifice exit plane to circular at 12 and half equivalent diameters downstream. The mean streamwise vorticity field, up to about three equivalent diameters downstream of the orifice exit plane, consists of four pairs of counter-rotating cells, which are aligned with the four edges in the centre of the cruciform orifice.