Feedback control of turbulent bluff-body wake with pulsed jet (Taihang Zhu, Prof Jonathan Morrison)
The pressure drag induced by the turbulent wake contributes about 50% of the total aerodynamic drag of bluff bodies such as trucks. By applying a high-frequency pulsed jet to the turbulent wake, we are able to increase the base pressure by 33%, leading to a total aerodynamic drag reduction of about 20%. This is especially beneficial to reducing fuel consumption of road vehicles thus reducing green gas emission and energy consumption. Both wind tunnel experiments and numerical simulation methods are being used to study the mechanism for the base pressure recovery and develop a feedback control scheme to further improve it.