Patent ID: 8466624

Claim:
An electrohydrodynamic fluid accelerator comprising: at least one corona discharge electrode having first and second ends and having a longitudinal extent spanning a distance between the first and second ends; an array of collector electrodes, the collector electrodes spaced apart and each having a generally planar portion oriented orthogonally to the longitudinal extent of the corona discharge electrode, the collector electrodes each presenting a curved leading profile displaced from the corona discharge electrode, the collector electrodes and the corona discharge electrode operatively coupled between terminals of a high voltage source to establish a corona discharge therebetween, wherein (i) the curved leading profiles are contoured and (ii) the collector electrodes and the corona discharge electrode are positioned with respect to each other such that all points along a respective one of the curved leading profiles are not equidistant from the corona discharge electrode, and instead a single point along the respective curved leading profile is at a minimum distance, d, from the corona discharge electrode and all additional points in either direction away from the single point along the respective curved leading profile are at increasing distance, >d, from the corona discharge electrode.