Development of a Plasma Injector for Supersonic Drag Reduction

Methods to reduce the turbulent viscous skin friction stand out as paramount to increasing the energy efficiency, and therefore the aerodynamic efficiency of supersonic aircraft. Eagle Harbor Technology (EHT) proposes to develop and optimize a MHD plasma injector, which will be used to efficiently reduce the viscous skin friction in supersonic aircraft. EHT has developed similar MHD plasma injection technologies, which have been applied to a number of different fusion energy science, aerospace thruster, and basic research investigations. Here, we aim to computationally investigate and verify the dominant physical mechanisms for MHD plasma drag reduction; develop a proof of concept plasma injector demo, which conforms to necessary power and efficiency requirements for an onboard flight-relevant system; and use insights gained through our computational investigations to optimize the performance of our MHD plasma injector for maximum aerodynamic efficiency. This investigation will focus on flight-relevant Reynolds and magnetic Reynolds numbers at low supersonic (M<~3) speeds. Phase II research will couple the plasma injector to a scale model airframe for detailed in-situ supersonic wind tunnel testing. The phase II research will produce a fully realized working plasma injector prototype that conform to power requirements of an on-board power system.

The target application for this work is to develop a plasma injector, which will be used to increase the aerodynamic efficiency in supersonic (M<~3) aircraft. The plasma injector works by modifying the turbulent viscous skin layer surrounding supersonic vehicles to reduce the mach wave shock front and resulting turbulence. This plasma injector technology can be applied to most supersonic aircraft and re-entry vehicles. Beyond drag reduction and sonic boom mitigation, plasma injection technology could eventually be developed as a steering mechanism during the critical period of re-entry of spacecraft and during hypersonic flight. The technology underlying plasma injectors is very similar to plasma thruster technology, so oportunities exhist for cross-fertilization between the two sub specialties. Finally, the insight gained through detailed extended MHD simulations can be applied to geospace environmental modeling and several astrophysics applications.

This plasma injector technology can be applied to several fields outside of aeronautics and astronautics. In particular, a great deal of this technology was developed for fusion energy science applications, and basic plasma physics research as plasma sources. As such, we expect this development effort to create spin-off technologies, which can be applied to these fields. These plasma injectors could additionally be tooled to function at standard temperatures and pressures and be used in plasma medicine to aid in wound healing and scar reduction or to plasma processing technologies. Finally, the development of technical capabilities in simulating the interaction of plasmas, partially ionized plasmas and neutral gasses can be used by all of the sub-fields mentioned above to develop insight into the behavior of these plasmas without the expense of experimental and laboratory testing.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 3) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

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