Degradation of sulfamethoxazole in water by dielectric barrier discharge plasma jet:influencing parameters,degradation pathway,toxicity evaluation

Sulfamethoxazole(SMX)is an antibiotic and widely present in aquatic environments,so it presents a serious threat to human health and sustainable development.A dielectric barrier discharge(DBD)plasma jet was utilized to degrade aqueous SMX,and the effects of various operating parameters(working gas,discharge power,etc)on SMX degradation performance were studied.The experimental results showed that the DBD plasma jet can obtain a relatively high degradation efficiency for SMX when the discharge power is high with an oxygen atmosphere,the initial concentration of SMX is low,and the aqueous solution is under acidic conditions.The reactive species produced in the liquid phase were detected,and OH radicals and O3were found to play a significant role in the degradation of SMX.Moreover,the process of SMX degradation could be better fitted by the quasi-first-order reaction kinetic equation.The analysis of the SMX degradation process indicated that SMX was gradually decomposed and 4-amino benzene sulfonic acid,benzene sulfonamide,4-nitro SMX,and phenylsulfinyl acid were detected,and thus three possible degradation pathways were finally proposed.The mineralization degree of SMX reached 90.04%after plasma treatment for 20 min,and the toxicity of the solution fluctuated with the discharge time but eventually decreased.

Characterization and Properties of Electroless Nickel Plated Poly (ethylene terephthalate) Nonwoven Fabric Enhanced by Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma Pretreatment

In order to develop a more economical pretreatment method for electroless nickel plating, a dielectric barrier discharge （DBD） plasma at atmospheric pressure was used to improve the hydrophilicity and adhesion of poly （ethylene terephthalate） （PET） nonwoven fabric. The properties of the PET nonwoven fabric including its liquid absorptive capacity （WA）, aging behavior, surface chemical composition, morphology of the surface, adhesion strength, surface electrical resistivity and electromagnetic interference （EMI）- shielding effectiveness （SE） were studied. The liquid absorptive capacity （WA） increased due to the incorporation of oxygen-containing and nitrogen-containing functional groups on the surface of PET nonwoven fabric after DBD airplasma treatment. The surface morphology of the nonwoven fibers became rougher after plasma treatment. Therefore, the surface was more prone to absorb tin sensitizer and palladium catalyst to form an active layer for the deposition of electroless nickel. SEM and X-ray diffraction （XRD） measurements indicated that a uniform coating of nickel was formed on the PET nonwoven fabric. The average EMI-SE of Ni-plating of PET nonwoven fabric maintained a relatively stable value （38.2 dB to 37.3 dB） in a frequency range of 50 MHz to 1500 MHz. It is concluded that DBD is feasible for pretreatment of nonwoven fabric for electroless nickel plating to prepare functional material with good EMI-SE properties.

Analysis of the critical active species for methylene blue decoloration in a dielectric barrier discharge plasma system

In the paper, a hybrid gas–liquid dielectric barrier discharge(DBD) plasma system was set up to treat a methylene blue(MB) solution. The effects of the change of the carrier gas, the gas bubbling rate and different kinds of scavenger addition, including sodium carbonate(Na_2CO_3),para benzoquinone(p-BQ), triethylenediamine and sodium dihydrogen phosphate(NaH_2PO_4),on the MB decoloration were reviewed to clarify the critical active species for the dye decoloration in the DBD plasma system. The obtained results show that higher decoloration of the MB solution could be achieved when O2 was used as the carrier gas, which could be 100% after 20 min discharge treatment, and the result confirmed the crucial effect of O_3 in the MB decoloration. Based on the experiments of the scavenger addition, it could be concluded that O_2·^- and ~1O_2 were two other important reactive oxygen species(ROS) for the MB decoloration.The results of the higher chemical oxygen demand removal and faster disappearance of the characteristic peak of the MB from the UV–vis analysis under O_2 bubbling conditions also proved the critical effect of the ROS formed by O_2 on the MB decoloration.

Degradation of phenol using a combination of granular activated carbon adsorption and bipolar pulse dielectric barrier discharge plasma regeneration

A combined method of granular activated carbon（GAC） adsorption and bipolar pulse dielectric barrier discharge（DBD） plasma regeneration was employed to degrade phenol in water.After being saturated with phenol,the GAC was filled into the DBD reactor driven by bipolar pulse power for regeneration under various operating parameters.The results showed that different peak voltages,air flow rates,and GAC content can affect phenol decomposition and its major degradation intermediates,such as catechol,hydroquinone,and benzoquinone.The higher voltage and air support were conducive to the removal of phenol,and the proper water moisture of the GAC was 20%.The amount of H2 O2 on the GAC was quantitatively determined,and its laws of production were similar to phenol elimination.Under the optimized conditions,the elimination of phenol on the GAC was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,and the total removal of organic carbons achieved 50.4%.Also,a possible degradation mechanism was proposed based on the HPLC analysis.Meanwhile,the regeneration efficiency of the GAC was improved with the discharge treatment time,which attained 88.5% after 100 min of DBD processing.

Diagnostics of Argon Inductively Coupled Plasma and Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma by Optical Emission Spectroscopy

An experimental setup was built up to carry out radio frequency (RF) inductively coupled plasma (ICP) and dielectric barrier discharge (DBD), and to depict the optical emission spectra (OES) of the discharges. OES from argon ICP and DBD plasmas in visible and near ultraviolet region were measured. For argon ICP, the higher RF power input (higher than 500 W for our machine), the higher degree of argon plasma ionization. But that doesn't mean a higher mean electron energy. With the increase in the power input, the mean electron energy increases slightly, whereas the density of electron increases apparently On the contrary, argon DBD discharge behaves in the manner of a pulsed DC discharge on optical emission spectroscopy and V-I characteristics. DBD current is composed of a series of pulses equally spaced in temporal domain. The Kinetics of DBD emission strength is mainly governed by the frequency of the current pulse.

Behavior of Fe Powder During High-Energy Ball Milling Cooperated with Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma

In this study, nanostructured Fe powders were synthesized following 10 hours of high-energy ball milling with a superimposed dielectric barrier discharge plasma （DBDP）. The mean size of the milled powder was approximately 100 nm with an average grain size of 16.2 nm. The influence of DBDP on the underlying grain refinement mechanisms during ball milling was investigated by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, X-ray diffraction （XRD） and BET methods. Our results show that the Fe particles displayed an extraordinary plasticity during the early milling stages under the action of DBDP, and that the plastic deformation experienced by the Fe particles during this stage was more severe than that present in normal milling. A high concentration of spherical Fe particles, approximately 50-100 nm in diameter, was documented via TEM. We propose that these spherical particles were generated via high temperature disintegration as a result of DBDP electron bombardment during ball milling. Our results suggest that it may be possible to significantly refine metallic powders during milling via the superimposition of DBDP.

Destruction of Gaseous Styrene with a Low-Temperature Plasma Induced by a Tubular Multilayer Dielectric Barrier Discharge

The destruction of gaseous styrene was studied using a low-temperature plasma induced by tubular multilayer dielectric barrier discharge（DBD）.The results indicate that the applied voltage,gas flow rate,inlet styrene concentration and reactor configuration play important roles in styrene removal efficiency （ηstyrene） and energy yield（EY）.Values of ηstyrene and EY reached 96%and 15567 mg/kWh when the applied voltage,gas flow rate,inlet styrene concentration and layers of quartz tubes were set at 10.8 kV,5.0 m/s,229 mg/m^3 and 5 layers,respectively.A qualitative analysis of the byproducts and a detailed discussion of the reaction mechanism are also presented.The results could facilitate industrial applications of the new DBD reactor for waste gas treatment.

Improved Ethanol Production from Xylose by Candida shehatae Induced by Dielectric Barrier Discharge Air Plasma

Xylose fermentation is essential for ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass. Exposure of the xylose-fermenting yeast Candida shehatae （C. shehatae） CICC1766 to atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge （DBD） air plasma yields a clone （designated as C81015） with stability, which exhibits a higher ethanol fermentation rate from xylose, giving a maximal enhancement in ethanol production of 36.2% compared to the control （untreated）. However, the biomass production of C81015 is lower than that of the control. Analysis of the NADH （nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide）- and NADPH （nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate）- linked xylose reductases and NAD＋-linked xylitol dehydrogenase indicates that their activities are enhanced by 34.1%, 61.5% and 66.3%, respectively, suggesting that the activities of these three enzymes are responsible for improving ethanol fermentation in C81015 with xylose as a substrate. The results of this study show that DBD air plasma could serve as a novel and effective means of generating microbial strains that can better use xylose for ethanol fermentation.

Preparation of Diamond-like Carbon Film Assisted in the Plasma of Dielectric Barrier Discharge at Atmospheric Pressure

Dielectric barrier discharge at atmospheric presure has been applied to prepare hydrocarbon films on large- area glass and silicon substrates. When hydrogen and methane mixture(2:1) is used as discharge gas and the substrate is heated to 300 C, hard hydrogenated amorphous carbon film is deposited. From the IR deconvolution analysis of the C-H stretching absorption for the coating, the hydrocarbon group ration (CH3:CH2:CH) and C-C bond type ratio (sp3c/sp2c) are about 10%: 21%: 69% and 3:1~6:1,respectively. Their Knoop hardness is up to 10Gpa. No film isdeposited when the content of methane in the mixed gases is decreased to 5% at 300 C silicon substrate.

Generation of reactive species in atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge with liquid water

Atmospheric pressure helium/water dielectric barrier discharge（DBD） plasma is used to investigate the generation of reactive species in a gas–liquid interface and in a liquid. The emission intensity of the reactive species is measured by optical emission spectroscopy（OES）with different discharge powers at the gas–liquid interface. Spectrophotometry is used to analyze the reactive species induced by the plasma in the liquid. The concentration of OH radicals reaches 2.2 μm after 3 min of discharge treatment. In addition, the concentration of primary longlived reactive species such as H;O;, NO;and O;are measured based on plasma treatment time.After 5 min of discharge treatment, the concentration of H;O;, NO;, and O;increased from 0 mg?·?L;to 96 mg?·?L;, 19.5 mg?·?L;, and 3.5 mg?·?L;, respectively. The water treated by plasma still contained a considerable concentration of reactive species after 6 h of storage. The results will contribute to optimizing the DBD plasma system for biological decontamination.

Hollow hexagonal pattern with surface discharges in a？dielectric barrier discharge

The hollow hexagonal pattern involved in surface discharges is firstly investigated in a？dielectric barrier discharge system. The spatiotemporal structures of the pattern are studied using an intensified charge-coupled device and photomultiplier. Instantaneous images taken by an intensified charge-coupled device and optical correlation measurements show that the surface discharges are induced by volume discharges. The optical signals indicate that the discharge filaments constituting the hexagonal frame discharge randomly at the first current pulse or the second pulse, once？or twice. There is no？interleaving of several sub-lattices, which indicates that the ‘memory＇ effect is no longer in force due to surface discharges. By using the emission spectrum method, both the molecule vibration temperature？and electron density of the surface discharges are larger than that of the volume discharges.

Effect of actuating voltage and discharge gap on plasma assisted detonation initiation process

The influence of actuating voltage and discharge gap on plasma assisted detonation initiation by alternating current dielectric barrier discharge was studied in detail.A loose coupling method was used to simulate the detonation initiation process of a hydrogen–oxygen mixture in a detonation tube under different actuating voltage amplitudes and discharge gap sizes.Both the discharge products and the detonation forming process assisted by the plasma were analyzed.It was found that the patterns of the temporal and spatial distributions of discharge products in one cycle keep unchanged as changing the two discharge operating parameters.However,the adoption of a higher actuating voltage leads to a higher active species concentration within the discharge zone,and atom H is the most sensitive to the variations of the actuating voltage amplitude among the given species.Adopting a larger discharge gap results in a lower concentration of the active species,and all species have the same sensitivity to the variations of the gap.With respect to the reaction flow of the detonation tube,the corresponding deflagration to detonation transition（DDT） time and distance become slightly longer when a higher actuating voltage is chosen.The acceleration effect of plasma is more prominent with a smaller discharge gap,and the benefit builds gradually throughout the DDT process.Generally,these two control parameters have little effect on the amplitude of the flow field parameters,and they do not alter the combustion degree within the reaction zone.

Oxidation of ciprofloxacin by the synergistic effect of DBD plasma and persulfate:reactive species and influencing factors analysis

A synergistic system of water falling film dielectric barrier discharge(DBD)plasma and persulfate(PS)was set up and used for oxidizing ciprofloxacin(CIP)in water.Results of reactive species formation in the DBD-only system as well as the DBD–PS system verified the PS activation in the DBD system.Influencing factors on CIP degradation and the degradation process were also been studied.The obtained results showed that the presence of PS could greatly improve the degradation and mineralization of CIP and that the degradation efficiency could reach 97.73%after only 40 min treatment with 4 m M PS addition.The increase of PS concentration,the lower CIP concentration,the acidic solution p H and the addition of metal ions(Fe^(2+)and Cu^(2+))enhanced the CIP degradation,while the existence of Cl^(-)and HCO_(3)^(-)had a negative effect.The experiments related to scavenger addition confirmed the contribution of the main reactive species to the CIP oxidation.Three probable degradation pathways were proposed by analyzing the inorganic ions and organic byproducts formed during the CIP degradation.The toxicity evaluation results of the CIP and its intermediates confirmed the effectiveness of the DBD–PS synergistic system.

Properties enhancement of antimicrobial chitosan-deposited polylactic acid films via cold plasma treatment

The present study aimed to understand the effect of dielectric barrier discharge cold plasma(DBD-CP)technology on the antimicrobial chitosan deposition and the properties enhancement of polylactic acid(PLA)films.The results indicated that DBD-CP was an effective method for improving the adhesion and surface hydrophilicity of PLA,facilitating the deposition of chitosan coating.This modification was attributed to the increased surface roughness,as well as the presence of polar functional groups observed through atomic force microscopy,surface free energy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis.The study further revealed that both water resistance and mechanical properties were significantly improved after DBD-CP treatment,which was positively correlated with the amount of chitosan deposited on the PLA surfaces.Following comprehensive evaluation,the treatment at 75 W was determined as the optimal condition for enhancing the properties.Additionally,the modified film exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus.Consequently,the DBD-CP technology could be a promising tool for better utilization of PLA-based materials in the antibacterial food packaging industry.

Flow separation control over an airfoil using continuous alternating current plasma actuator

The flow separation control over an NACA 0015 airfoil using continuous alternating current(AC)dielectric barrier discharge(DBD)plasma actuator is investigated experimentally and numerically.This work is intended to report some observations made from our experiment,to which little attention is paid in the previous studies,but which is thought to be important to the understanding of control of complex flow separation with AC DBD.To this end,the response of separated flow to AC plasma actuation is visualized through the time-resolved particle image velocimetry(PIV)measurement,whereas numerical simulation is carried out to complement the experiment.The flow control process at chord-based Reynolds number(Re)of 3.31×105 is investigated.It is found that the response of external flow to plasma forcing is delayed for up to tens of milliseconds and the delay time increases with angle of attack increasing.Also observed is that at the intermediate angle of attack near stall,the forced flow features a well re-organized flow pattern.However,for airfoil at high post-stall angle of attack,the already well suppressed flow field can recover to the massively separated flow state and then reattach to airfoil surface with the flow pattern fluctuating between the two states in an irregular manner.This is contrary to one’s first thought that the forced flow at any angles of attack will become well organized and regular,and reflects the complexity of flow separation control.

An Atmospheric Large-Scale Cold Plasma Jet

This letter reports on the generation and characteristics of a large-scale dielectric barrier discharge plasma jet at atmospheric pressure. With appropriate parameters, diffuse plasma with a 50×5 mm2 cross-sectional area is obtained. The characteristics of the discharges are diag- nosed by using electrical and optical methods. In addition to being generated in helium, plasma is also generated in a mixed gas of helium and oxygen. The oxygen atomic radiant intensity （3p5P→ 3s5S, 3p3P→3s3S transition） is not proportional to the proportion of oxygen in the gas mixture, as shown by the experimental results.

Effect of actuating frequency on plasma assisted detonation initiation

Aiming at studying the influence of actuating frequency on plasma assisted detonation initiation by alternating current dielectric barrier discharge, a loosely coupled method is used to simulate the detonation initiation process of a hydrogenoxygen mixture in a detonation tube at different actuating frequencies. Both the discharge products and the detonation forming process which is assisted by the plasma are analyzed. It is found that the patterns of the temporal and spatial distributions of discharge products in one cycle are not changed by the actuating frequency. However, the concentration of every species decreases as the actuating frequency rises, and atom O is the most sensitive to this variation, which is related to the decrease of discharge power. With respect to the reaction flow of the detonation tube, the deflagration-todetonation transition（DDT） time and distance both increase as the actuating frequency rises, but the degree of effect on DDT development during flow field evolution is erratic. Generally, the actuating frequency affects none of the amplitude value of the pressure, temperature, species concentration of the flow field, and the combustion degree within the reaction zone.

Tuning Effect of N_2 on Atmospheric-Pressure Cold Plasma CVD of TiO_2 Photocatalytic Films

To deposit TiO2 films through plasma CVD, the partial pressure ratio of O2 to TIC14 should be greater than the stoichiometric ratio （PO2/PTiCl4 〉 1）. However, this may lead to the formation of powder instead of film on the substrate when using volume dielectric barrier discharge （volume-DBD） at atmospheric pressure. In this study, by adding N2 into the working gas Ar, TiO2 photocatalytic films were successfully fabricated in the presence of excess O2 （PO2/PTiC14 = 2.6） by using a wire-to-plate atmospheric-pressure volume-DBD. The tuning effect of N2 on the deposition of TiO2 film was studied in detail. The results showed that by increasing the N2 content, the deposition rate and particle size of the TiO2 film were reduced, and its photocatalytic activity was enhanced. The tuning mechanism of N2 is further discussed.

Surface Decontamination of Chemical Agent Surrogates Using an Atmospheric Pressure Air Flow Plasma Jet

An atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge （DBD） plasma jet generator using air flow as the feedstock gas was applied to decontaminate the chemical agent surrogates on the surface of aluminum, stainless steel or iron plate painted with alkyd or PVC. The experi- mental results of material decontamination show that the residual chemical agent on the material is lower than the permissible value of the National Military Standard of China. In order to test the corrosion effect of the plasma jet on different material surfaces in the decontamination pro-cess, corrosion tests for the materials of polymethyl methacrylate, neoprene, polyvinyl chloride （PVC）, polyethylene （PE）, phenolic resin, iron plate painted with alkyd, stainless steel, aluminum, etc. were carried out, and relevant parameters were examined, including etiolation index, chroma- tism, loss of gloss, corrosion form, etc. The results show that the plasma jet is slightly corrosive for part of the materials, but their performances are not affected. A portable calculator, computer display, mainboard, circuit board of radiogram, and a hygrometer could work normally after being treated by the plasma jet.

Comparison of Nitric Oxide Concentrations in μs-and ns-Atmospheric Pressure Plasmas by UV Absorption Spectroscopy

In this paper,an absorption spectroscopy measurement method was applied on two atmospheric pressure plasma sources to determine their production of nitric oxide.The concentrations are essential for evaluating the plasma sources based on the principle of the Dielectric Barrier Discharge（DBD）for applications in plasma medicine.The described method is based on a setup with an electrodeless discharge lamp filled with a mixture of oxygen and nitrogen.One of the emitted wavelengths is an important resonance wavelength of nitric oxide（λ = 226.2 nm）.By comparing the absorption behaviour at the minimum and maximum of the spectral absorption cross section of nitric oxide around that wavelength,and measuring the change in intensity by the absorbing plasma,the concentration of nitric oxide inside the plasma can be calculated.The produced nitric oxide concentrations depend on the pulse duration and are in the range of 180 ppm to 1400 ppm,so that a distance of about 10 cm to the respiratory tract is enough to conform to the VDI Guideline 2310.