&KDOPHUVWK 2FW

Simulation of Synthetic Jets for Separation Control

M.A. Leschziner*
Imperial College London

*Contributions from: Geoff Fishpool, Alexandros Avdis, Don Wu, Anne Dejoan
Sponsored by: EPSRC, Airbus, BAE Systems

Engineering context
On-demand control of separation
Local elimination of separation e.g. wing-body
junction
Removal of heavy, mechanical high-lift components
Improve overall efficiency
Control of aero-acoustics in separated flows

Alternatives in separation control

Passive Control

Vortex generators
Fences
Chevrons
Wedges
Dimples

Active Control

Suction/blowing

Active flaps
Acoustic excitation
Active dimples
Jets
Round, square, slot
continuous, pulsed, synthetic

Synthetic jets
Zero net mass flux no mass supply!
Finite momentum and vorticity flux
Pulsing by piston or diaphragm in cavity
Generally high injection velocity 2 8 f 
Jet causes unsteady streamwise vortices, turbulence, mixing

Jet parameters
Maximum aperture-averaged velocity, 9M

Aperture diameter / width, '

9M '

Injection Reynolds number, 5H M

Period of blowing, 7R(half of cycle)

Dimensionless stroke length

slug equivalent, / { /

'

9M

 7R
YGW
' 

Jet properties
Circulation

Vorticity advected across orifice

Flux of vorticity
9f

= rate of change of circulation

Time-integrated flux
total circulation
7R

*

7
G

9f
Y
G\
GW
GW
|
Z



 




Jet properties
Circulation in primary vortex capped at high stroke length
Additional circulation in trailing structures
Zhong et al, FTaC (2007)

Total circulation
Primary vortex

Synthetic jet in stagnant environment

Comparison with mean-flow experiments by Cater & Soria (2002)

5H=5000, 6W=0.003
Square, body-fitted and
IBM representation of orifice

Synthetic jet in stagnant environment

Fluid-mechanic issues
Fundamentals of vortex formation, propagation and breakdown
Cavity-orifice-jet interaction
Interaction with cross-flow

Control effectiveness (practical)

intensity

longevity, persistence

region of influence

reduction of separation

Mechanisms underpinning enhanced mixing (fundamental)

Resonance with instability modes

Interaction with turbulence scales

Computational challenges
Scale-disparity effects jet size = O(0.001) x controlled-flow length
Complex geometry / topology cavity, orifice, outside flow
Cavity small, but influential
Strong unsteadiness due to high-frequency injection O(200-1000 Hz)

RANS unpromising; models unsuitable for unsteady conditions

High 5H: near-wall resolution is a serious problem

Compressibility and resonance in cavity
Membrane (and jet) response to voltage actuation unknown
Jet-injection period >> turbulence time scales:
very long simulations
difficulty of obtaining phase-averaged data
Turbulent upstream conditions: full spectral description of inlet flow
Wide, multi-D parameter space

Importance of cavity
2d phase-averaged flow

5HM 
3UHVFULEHGDWRULILFH

S I

:LWKFDYLW\

Importance of motion around orifice

Phase-averaged flow in turbulent boundary layer

8R
'

Resolution of orifice
Examined in double back-to-back cavities

5HM 
16 cells
Orifice

32 cells

Influence of inlet conditions

Generated by recycling needs very long domains
Persistent, long-lived structures
Spanwise inhomogeneity despite very long precursor domain
and long integration times

Principal configuration

Ramp designed by reference to experiments of Song & Eaton

(Experiments in Fluids, 2004)
Modified / optimised with RANS computations (without jets)

G' = 5-20
Inter-orifice spacing = 10'

5H4 = 1100; 5HK 13700; 5HM =2170; 9U 6W 

Earlier configurations

Slot injection into a back-step flow

Rescal

Slot injection into a separated flow

behind a dune-shaped body

Round/square-jet injection into

turbulent boundary layer

Backstep configuration
Expts. by S.Yoshioka, S. Obi and S. Masuda (2001))

Reynolds number: 5H 8F KQ 

Strouhal number: 6W IH K8F



Optimum frequency

Spectral analysis
Shear-layer-mode
instability Unforced-flow
I T  8 F |  6W | 

Shedding-mode instability;
flapping shear layer
6W | 

Skin friction, velocity profiles, shear stress

Reduction in recirculation length: Expt - 30%; LES - 26%

Distance normalised by unforced

reattachment distance

6KHDUVWUHVV

Wall - m ount ed NASA 2d hum p

Targeted at separation control
With / without synthetic jet
Experiment: 0=0.1, 5HF =935892
Jet frequency 6W=0.216 (based on
bump height)
Jet velocity 9MHW 0.668LQI

5HTLQOHW = 5900 and 6770

Geom et ry and overall view of flow

Effect s of act uat ion

No jet
Expt. reattachment: 1.1c
Predicted reattachment: 1.07c

With jet
Expt. reattachment: 0.99c
Predicted reattachment: 0.97c
25% reduction in recirculation length

Phase-averaged field

Phase - averaged fields

Expt.

Quantitative comparisons and POD analysis: Avdis et al, FTaC (2009)

32'
2500 Samples collected over 250 000 time-steps

13 flow-through times

22 jet periods
Jet-on

Circular jet in attached turbulent boundary layer

Test cases by reference to PIV and hot-wire data from Garcillan
et al (2008)
Jet flow

IBM representation of orifice

Velocity ratio 9MHW 8 

Strouhal number 6W  based on orifice diameter and 8

Cross-flow

G  G

Boundary-layer thickness

Momentum-thickness Reynolds number 5HTLQOHW 

Injection without upstream turbulence

Non-turbulent cross-flow, only mean profile imposed at the inlet
Iso-surface of instantaneous, normalised vorticity magnitude
 G 8



Injection with upstream turbulence

Fully turbulent cross-flow
Iso-surface of instantaneous, normalised vorticity magnitude
 (G /8)



Phase-averaged fields

Time-averaged flow around orifice

Time-averaged modification of boundary layer

Streamwise velocity and vorticity

Boundary-layer properties
Streamwise evolution of
momentum thickness
TTLQ and shape factor +
at centre-plane
Large excursion from
standard boundary-layer
profile not unexpected

Quantitative comparisons: Wu and Leschziner, IJHFF (2009)

Circular jet in attached laminar boundary layer

Investigate fundamental effects on cross-flow

5H 
G '
/' 
9U 

Mean transverse motion control effectiveness

Upward motion: red 5%; Downward motion: blue 5%

Separation control with circular jets

Principal configuration

Baseline flow no injection

Experiments: Zhang & Zhong
(private communication, 2009)

Baseline flow
No injection

With injection whole domain

Phase- and spanwise-averaged over 6 cycles
Present conditions/'=12.6, 6W=0.18
Alternative: /' 

6W 

flapping instability

shear-layer instability mode

I T 8R



Cavity flow

Zoom onto the separation zone

6W=0.18

Zoom onto the separation zone

6W=0.18

Mean effect on separation (unconverged)

6W=0.18

3,9H[SHULPHQWV =KRQJ =KDQJ

3KDVHORFNHG 8

[= K; 9U ; I = 40 Hz;

/ = 19.5

PIV experiments
7LPHPHDQ 8 ORFXV

[= K; 9U ; I = 40 Hz;

/ = 19.5

0.3
0.25

y/h

0.2
0.15
VR=0.2
VR=0.3
VR=0.4
VR=0.5

0.1
0.05
0
-0.5

-0.4

-0.3

-0.2

-0.1
0
0.1
Spanwise position [z/S]

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

Mean effect on separation (unconverged)

6W=1

Concluding remarks
Much of the control is derived from large-scale flapping of the
separated shear layer, due to jet perturbation.
For slot jets in separated flow, the PDJLF 6W=O(0.2) seems to have
some significance, associated with flapping instability.
The relationship to the shear-layer instability is rather unclear.
Control depends on high injection velocities and spanwise extent of
injection.
Control effectiveness is limited to a small spanwise extent in which
streamwise vorticity is generated.
Widely-spaced round jets appear much less effective than slot jets.
Much remains to be studied: sensitivity to

jet-BL spectral interaction,

injection period,
injection intensity