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Full-Text Articles in Engineering
A Study Of Varying Dielectric Constant And Thickness Of Dielectric Barrier Discharge Devices And Their Subsequent Plasma Actuation, Sharon Kardasz
A Study Of Varying Dielectric Constant And Thickness Of Dielectric Barrier Discharge Devices And Their Subsequent Plasma Actuation, Sharon Kardasz
Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses
The principles of air-breathing ion propulsion are relatively unestablished in the aerodynamic realm as traditional forms of combustion for propulsion systems have remained in use. However, due to increasing environmental, economic, and efficiency concerns of traditional combustion, interests in innovative propulsion methodologies, such as electric propulsion, are emerging. A primary technology of interest for use of ion propulsion is the Dielectric Barrier Discharge Device (DBD). Preliminary research conducted at the University of Arkansas has determined the most favorable DBD geometry. This work will continue the preliminary research to decipher the most favorable DBD configuration by varying dielectric thickness and dielectric …
Simulating Dielectric Barrier Plasma Actuators With Varying Geometries, Cass Wiederkehr
Simulating Dielectric Barrier Plasma Actuators With Varying Geometries, Cass Wiederkehr
Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses
The idea of Ionic Wind Propulsion has long been a topic of research for whether or not it can be used as a practical power source for flight. MIT researchers proved in 2018 that a plane with zero moving parts powered by Ionic Wind Propulsion was possible, and sustained flight could work with an internal power supply. However, due to the thin wire electrodes required to generate the ion cloud that made such propulsion possible, large amounts of drag rendered the plane extremely inefficient and impractical. Dielectric Barrier Discharge Devices (DBDs) are being investigated as to whether they can serve …
Improving The Performance Of An Ead Aircraft By Use Of A Retractable Electrode System, Michael Alexander Fredricks
Improving The Performance Of An Ead Aircraft By Use Of A Retractable Electrode System, Michael Alexander Fredricks
Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses
Electroaerodynamic (EAD) propulsion is a growing area of research for small, low powered aircraft. Recent tests of EAD aircraft have demonstrated low performance in unpowered, gliding flight. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of a retractable electrode system on the flight performance of an EAD aircraft. An analysis of electrode drag contribution on the MIT ionic wind plane’s performance predicts a maximum lift to drag ratio of 22, with the addition of a retractable electrode system, for a similarly sized and modeled EAD aircraft. An experiment is developed using a prototype aircraft, launcher, and retraction system …
Time-Of-Flight Based Sonic Speed Measurements For Cold Gas Thruster Development, Brandon W. Kempf
Time-Of-Flight Based Sonic Speed Measurements For Cold Gas Thruster Development, Brandon W. Kempf
Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses
The purpose of this thesis is to explore an experiment developed for validating the usage of a gaseous solution of water and propylene glycol for cold gas propulsion. The experiment involves a “Time of Flight” method of calculating the speed of sound in the gas and the corresponding specific heat ratio using a copper tube, two MEMS microphones, a piezoelectric speaker, and data-acquisition hardware. The experiment was calibrated using the known thermodynamic properties of air. The accuracy of the experiment was found to be within 0.6% for calculations of the speed of sound in air and within 1.0% of the …