Actuators for Active Flow Control

TLDR

Actuators convert electrical signals into physical disturbances, and active flow control actuators modify flow through electronically controllable disturbances, a field that has expanded rapidly due to its importance and design challenges. The review aims to provide a framework for discussing actuator specifications, characteristics, selection, design, and classification in aeronautics, while highlighting strengths, drawbacks, and future research directions. It discusses actuator fundamentals and describes popular low‑to‑moderate speed flow actuator types such as fluidic, moving object/surface, and plasma actuators. The review identifies strengths and inevitable drawbacks of each actuator type and proposes potential future research directions.

Abstract

Actuators are transducers that convert an electrical signal to a desired physical quantity. Active flow control actuators modify a flow by providing an electronically controllable disturbance. The field of active flow control has witnessed explosive growth in the variety of actuators, which is a testament to both the importance and challenges associated with actuator design. This review provides a framework for the discussion of actuator specifications, characteristics, selection, design, and classification for aeronautical applications. Actuator fundamentals are discussed, and various popular actuator types used in low-to-moderate speed flows are then described, including fluidic, moving object/surface, and plasma actuators. We attempt to highlight the strengths and inevitable drawbacks of each and highlight potential future research directions.