The dynamics of charged particles in a turbulent channel flow

Experiments in a new vertical channel were conducted to probe the dynamics of charged particles in turbulence. Particles, charged after passing through an ionization section at the top of the channel, are subjected to interactions with both the turbulent flow and an external electric field. To obtain particle statistics in the near-wall region, three high-speed cameras are used to capture particle trajectories in both the wall-normal and wall-parallel planes. The electric Stokes number, which is sensitive to changes in the particle charge and the external electric field, is varied throughout these experiments to explore conditions in which electrostatic effects play a significant role in the particle dynamics. These experiments reveal how electrostatic effects alter particle clustering in turbulent boundary layers and provide insight into the relationship between electrostatics and turbulence in the modulation of particle-laden flows.