Experimental study on the effect of the electrode bending angle on the dielectric-barrier discharge performance

To support the flow-control demands of morphing aircraft, this paper presents electrode structures with various bending angles to simulate the structural deformation of plasma actuators during operation. The experiment investigates the impact of electrode bending on the characteristics of atmospheric-pressure dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD). The experimental results show that there are two modes during the discharge process (filamentary and homogeneous) and that the electrode bending angles significantly affect the discharge-mode transition. As the electrode bending angle increases, the critical voltage for transitioning from the filamentary to the homogeneous discharge mode decreases. The numerical simulation results reveal the mechanism by which electrode bending influences the electric-field strength and discharge-mode conversion. This study provides important technical support for the application of variable-geometry electrode plasma actuators to the flow control of morphing aircraft.