The aerodynamic performance of small-scale airfoils operating at Reynolds numbers below 200,000 is often degraded by laminar boundary layer separation and laminar separation bubbles, resulting in reduced lift-to-drag ratios and early stall. Active flow control using dielectric barrier discharge actuators has emerged as a promising strategy to address these challenges. This study investigates the effects of a steady-state, DC-driven dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) actuator operating in the electrostatic regime on the lift and drag performance of a Clark-Y (11.7) airfoil in a low-speed, open-circuit wind tunnel at Reynolds number 1.5 × 10 5 . A spanwise, asymmetric, triple-electrode surface actuator was integrated into the airfoil and energized at applied voltages ranging from 10 to 14 kV. Force measurements were obtained with an ATI Mini40 six-axis load cell for the angles of attack 0°, 5°, and 10°.The results indicate that DC-driven DBD actuation produced measurable but configuration-dependent modifications to airfoil performance. At 0° angle of attack, actuation reduced lift coefficients by 10-14% relative to the established controls, with drag trends increasing in excess of 30%. At 5°, lift improvements of 2.5% and 3.6% were observed while drag reductions exceeding 48% were achieved. At 10°, forward electrode actuation yielded a maximum lift improvement of 5% while aft actuation resulted in a 5% reduction; drag responses varied, producing both positive and negative changes. Overall, drag reduction effects are shown to be more consistent than lift enhancement, and lift-to-drag ratios improved in selected test cases, particularly at 5° angle of attack. These findings highlight the potential of DC-driven, steady-state electrostatic DBD actuation as a low-power, simplified, and scalable alternative to heat generating, AC-driven DBD plasma actuating systems for small-scale aerodynamic augmentation and flow control.
McKinnie et al. (Fri,) studied this question.