Flow separation control over airfoils using DBD plasma body force

The body force effects of plasma origin on the flow over a NACA 0015 airfoil are investigated by numerical simulation. The plasma actuator effect is estimated based on a phenomenological DBD plasma model coupled with 2-dimentional compressible Navier-Stokes equations. The equations are solved using an explicit finite volume method on unstructured grids. The responses of a separated flow field to the effects of a plasma actuator body force in various magnitudes and locations are presented. Also the effects of plasma region dimensions on the flow separation control are studied. It is found that the dimensions of plasma region, the magnitude of the body force, and the location of the plasma actuator all have significant impacts on the separation control.