Feedback control by low-order modelling of the laminar flow past a bluff body

In this work a two-dimensional laminar flow past a square cylinder is considered. Actuators placed on the cylinder enable active control by blowing and suction. Proportional feedback control is then applied using velocity measurements taken in the cylinder wake. Projection onto an empirical subspace is combined with a calibration technique to build a low-order model of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. This model is used within an optimization method to determine a set of feedback gains which reduces the unsteadiness of the wake at Re = 150. The resulting controlled flows are further characterized by computing the critical Reynolds numbers for the onset of the vortex shedding instability.