Abstract
Boundary layer transition is a typical aerodynamic phenomenon in supersonic flow that refers to the transition of the boundary layer from laminar flow to turbulent flow. The instabilities and transition mechanisms are complicated. A turbulent boundary layer has an associated higher energy content more momentum and, therefore, is less prone to be separated. Furthermore, accurate and fast transition in the flow over the compressor blades in turbo machinery provides significant flow mixing, resulting in an increase in engine performance. In addition, the development of the scramjet made it possible to use plasma actuators as turbulator to increase the turbulence within an isolator and increase combustion efficiency. Thus, different methods of boundary layer transition have been proposed. The focus of this chapter is a low Reynolds number supersonic boundary layer and its interaction with an active flow control device. The Plasma-Based Actuator’s high repetition rate enables itself as an unsteady control mechanism to address the unsteady flow features. Moreover, its strong forcing makes it suitable for flow control applications in the high-speed flow regime, especially the supersonic boundary layer.