The Velocity Characteristics of a Serial-Staged EHD Gas Pump in Air

The application of the ionic wind in the fields of aerodynamic control and heat transfer is limited by its low velocity and small active area. This paper deals with the experimental and theoretical analysis of the ionic-wind velocity in serial-staged electrohydrodynamic gas pumps under a negative corona discharge in air. Each stage consists of a pair of needle array-to-ring or needle array-to-mesh electrodes. It was observed that the active area of the gas pump can be enlarged by using a needle array electrode where the negative corona discharge started simultaneously and that the needle array-to-mesh electrode can generate a higher ionic wind velocity compared to that of the needle array-to-ring electrode. The flow velocity of the ionic wind is dependent on both the number of serial stages and the pressure loss. A maximum average flow velocity of 7.39 m/s, volumetric flow rate of 140 L/min, and energy conversion efficiency of 0.8% were achieved experimentally in this paper.