Study on the Flow Characteristics of Synthetic Jets Near a Rigid Plane Boundary

The jet flows have been applied to various fields to control the flow separation. Over the last decade, several studies have investigated synthetic jets. However, there are still many clarifications needed, including details of the structure and Coanda effect of synthetic jets. The present study clarifies some fundamental flow characteristics of free synthetic jets and synthetic jets near a rigid boundary by conducting an experiment and numerical simulations. As the main results, it is found that the velocity distribution of free synthetic jets depends on K = Re/S² (the ratio of the Reynolds number to the square of the Stokes number) and can be identified by the maximum velocity at the centerline and the jet half-width. Flow visualization is carried out applying the smoke wire method. In addition, it is confirmed that the flow characteristics of the synthetic jet near a rigid boundary and re-attachment length of the synthetic jet are determined not only by H₁/b₀ (normalized step heights) but also K.