General Description Report
Monday, September 15, 2008
PIFAS research team
The goal of this senior design research team is to design an aerodynamic structure that uses plasma actuators to improve corresponding flight dynamics and fluid motion regimes. With such a structure, it will then be possible to study the effect f such actuators and their future in commercial and military flight. We will accomplish this goal by accelerating and reattaching the airflow over the surface of airfoil structures through a controlled ionization of the flow in the vicinity of the structure’s boundary layer.
Flow will be ionized using high voltage and high frequency electric currents passed through specially fabricated actuators which are located at specific regions of the airfoil to maximize the effect as shown in figure 1. Such positions will be decided through experimentation and will be part of the results of this research team. Data obtained by previous experimenters suggest the actuators be places in the leading and trailing edges of airfoils and therefore our research will focus on such areas as shown in figure 2.
Figure 1: Actuator setup
The plasma actuators will be operating at a voltage range of 1-15KV AC with a possible increase of up to 30KV AC if the appropriate equipment and safety procedure are approved. Similarly corresponding frequency and current are 1-5 KHz and 1-4amps. The actuators and all electronic equipment will be controlled by use of PIC microcontrollers communicating the setup to computer software managed by LabView®. This is done to prevent unnecessary manual manipulation of dangerous high voltage equipment. All materials will be encased to prevent shock hazards and possible electromagnetic interference with other equipment.
Materials used to construct the final testing structure as well as other necessary components include fiber glass, polycarbonates, acrylic, Kapton tape, copper and several non-toxic adhesives. Great importance is placed on the heat resistance and/or electrical conductivity of the materials. We expect however that during our testing several materials not listed here may need to be used. Construction of the structure will be achieved through techniques such as wet composite layout, vacuum bag composite creation and soldering of certain metallic components. Adhesives and glues will be used on certain parts that are not structurally critical. Circuitry will be developed in the electronics support lab and used widely in all testing areas such as the wind tunnel facility.
Preliminary testing of the actuators, structural integrity of the test airfoil, controlling circuitry and dielectric resistivity will either be performed to ensure compliance with all university safety guidelines or has already been done. Appropriate safety requirements and regulations are currently being set with the help of several advisors to endure the students and staff safety while working in this project. More about this can be found in the following Hazard and Human safety analysis. Other testing includes but is not limited to: Thermal radiation, noise pollution, vibrations testing, failsafe methods and mechanisms, EMF and other electronic interference testing and finally live UAV mount testing. Wind tunnel testing will be extensively used during both semesters, the main purpose being aerodynamics efficiency.
The following is our Main timeline. For a more in-depth explanation go to our webpage stated at the header of this document and look for the MS Project Guide to our project.
Contact: Esteban Contreras (321 960 2952), Christian Rodriguez (443 474 4633)