Visualization of ionic wind in laminar jet flames

Abstract

Electric field, when it is applied to hydrocarbon flames, generates ionic wind due to the electric body force on charge carrying species. Ionic wind has been shown to influence soot emission, propagation speed, and stability of flames; however, a detailed behavior of ionic wind and its effects on flames is still not clear. Here, we investigated the dynamic behaviors of flames and ionic wind in the presence of direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC) electric fields in nonpremixed and premixed jet flames with a jet nozzle placed between two parallel electrodes. We observed a skewed flame toward a lower potential electrode with DC and lower frequency AC (e.g., 10 Hz) and a steady flame with higher frequencies AC (1000 Hz), while we found that the ionic wind blew toward both the anode and cathode regardless of flame type (nonpremixed or premixed) or the source of the electric field (DC and AC).