Enhancement of Ion Acceleration Efficiency by Multi-stage and Accelerating Electrodes Coupling

The kinetic energy transfer of ions in non-uniform electric field causes the flow of fluids called an ionic wind. This study investigates ionic wind velocity by the multi-stage configuration of corona discharge electrodes and installation of accelerating electrodes. Ionic wind velocity can be improved, independent of the increase in the applied voltage being limited by the breakdown voltage. The amount of ion generation is increased and overlapped by the multi-stage configuration that considers reverse ionization and the movement distance of ions. This study shows the shape of accelerating electrodes that minimize traps occurred during ion movement. Ultimately, the ionic wind velocity was improved by 142.3% and the energy efficiency was improved by 5.1 times compared to the single-stage ionic wind generator.