Double DBD Plasma Actuator Simulations and Experiments in Quiescent Air

Summary form only given. We have investigated surface dielectric barrier discharges with both electrodes insulated. Our experiments with such double barrier actuators have shown that flow is induced in quiescent air from a narrow electrode towards a wide one. The series of observed current peaks suggest a strongly filamentary plasma. Fluid simulations indicate that the net force exists because the plasma is prevented from propagating beyond the edge of the narrow electrode. The intense peaks in the device current are the result of rapid gas breakdown above the dielectric surface. Sawtooth waveforms have similar effects on the flow induced by double barrier actuators to those observed in single barrier devices. We present the results from a study examining the variations of induced force as several geometric dimensions of the actuator change. We compare the forces observed in experiments and predicted by simulation for each actuator geometry. The dimensions compared include narrow electrode size, electrode gap spacing, and others.