An investigation into the sensory application of DBD plasma actuators for pressure measurement

This paper investigates the effect of air pressure on the current used by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuators and the voltage limits for plasma production in these actuators. The purpose of this research was to determine whether DBD plasma actuators have potential for application as a pressure sensor at sub-atmospheric pressure conditions. It was found that these actuators were sensitive to air pressure and possessed a distinct, non-linear relationship between the electrical current consumed by them and ambient pressure. It was also found that lower and upper voltage limits for plasma production increased approximately linearly with pressure. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.