Comparative study on the degradation of phenol by a high-voltage pulsed discharge above a liquid surface and under a liquid surface

The degradation of phenol by pulsed discharge plasma above a liquid surface(APDP) and under a liquid surface(UPDP) was compared.The effects of discharge voltage,discharge distance,initial solution conductivity and initial p H on the removal of phenol were studied.It was concluded that the removal of phenol increases with increasing discharge voltage and with decreasing discharge distance in both APDP and UPDP systems.An increase in the initial solution’s conductivity has a positive effect in the APDP system but a negative effect in the UPDP system.In addition,alkaline conditions are conducive to the degradation of phenol in the APDP system,while acidic conditions are conducive in the UPDP system.Free radical quenching experiments revealed that ·O-2has an important influence on the degradation of phenol in the APDP system,while ·OH plays a key role in the UPDP system.This paper verifies the differences in the two discharge methods in terms of phenol removal.

Degradation of antibiotic contaminants from water by gas–liquid underwater discharge plasma

Antibiotic contamination adversely affects human health and ecological balance.In this study,gasliquid underwater discharge plasma was employed to simultaneously degrade three antibiotics,sulfadiazine(SDZ),tetracycline(TC),and norfloxacin(NOR),to address the growing problem of antibiotic contaminants in water.The effects of various parameters on the antibiotic degradation efficiency were evaluated,including the discharge gas type and flow rate,the initial concentration and pH of the solution,and the discharge voltage.Under the optimum parameter configuration,the average removal rate of the three antibiotics was 54.0% and the energy yield was 8.9 g(kW·h)-1after 5 min treatment;the removal efficiency was 96.5% and the corresponding energy yield was4.0 g(kW·h)-1 after 20 min treatment.Reactive substance capture and determination experiments indicated that ·OH and O3 played a vital role in the decomposition of SDZ and NOR,but the role of reactive substances in TC degradation was relatively less significant.

CUTTING REGULARITY AND DISCHARGE CHARACTERISTICS BY USING COMPOSITE COOLING LIQUID IN WIRE CUT ELECTRICAL DISCHARGE MACHINE WITH HIGH WIRE TRAVELING SPEED

The analysis of cutting regularity is provided through using and comparing two typical cooling liquids. It is proved that cutting regularity is greatly affected by cooling liquid＇s washing ability. Discharge characteristics and theoretic analysis between two electrodes are also discussed based on discharge waveform. By using composite cooling liquid which has strong washing ability, the efficiency in the first stable cutting phase has reached more than 200 mm^2/min, and the roughness of the surface has reached Ra〈0.8 μm after the fourth cutting with more than 50 mm^2/min average cutting efficiency. It is pointed out that cutting situation of the wire cut electrical discharge machine with high wire traveling speed （HSWEDM） is better than the wire cut electrical discharge machine with low wire traveling speed （LSWEDM） in the condition of improving the cooling liquid washing ability. The machining indices of HSWEDM will be increased remarkably by using the composite cooling liquid.

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.

Seed Mediated Growth of Gold Nanoparticles Based on Liquid Arc Discharge

We report studies on the growth of gold nanoparticles by a seed-mediated approach in solution. The synthetic method is adapted from one we published earlier （Ashkarran et al. Appl. Phys. A 2009, 96, 423）. The synthesized gold nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, dynamic light scattering （DLS）, UV-Vis spectroscopy, optical imaging and atomic force microscopy （AFM）. Optical absorption spectroscopy of the prepared samples at 15 A arc current in HAuCI4 solution shows a surface plasmon resonance around 520 nm. It is found that sodium citrate acts as a stabilizer and surface capping agent of the colloidal nanoparticles. The intensity of the plasmonic peak of the prepared gold nanoparticles for 1 minute arc duration gradually increases due to seed mediation for up to 6 hours. The formation time of gold nanoparticles at higher seed concentrations is less than that at lower seed concentrations.

INTERACTION OF PLASMA—LIQUID IN AN OXYGEN GLOW DISCHARGE Ⅲ.OXIDATION DESULFURIZATION OF ETHYL—THIOETHER

A few factors affecting plasma oxidation desulfurization of ethyl- thioether were investigated.Under the typical conditions,the conversion and degree of desulfurization of ethyl-thioether can be achieved up to 88% and 79% respectively.

Investigation on the mode of AC discharge in H_2O affected by temperature

In this paper, some experimental equipment has been set up for k Hz frequency AC liquid phase discharge, and the temperature of the deionized water was regulated during discharge. The electrical characteristics and spectra of liquid phase HO discharge have been investigated. Two discharge modes, high temperature and low temperature, were both found. The results show that there are two mechanisms in liquid phase discharge: the field ionization mechanism and the breakdown mechanism of bubbles, and these two mechanisms are always developed simultaneously; the temperature is the key factor determining the discharge type. At high temperature, the breakdown of bubbles is the main discharge mechanism, and the field ionization mechanism occurs mainly at low temperature.

Novel electrode structure in a DBD reactor applied to the degradation of phenol in aqueous solution

Phenol degradation experimental results are presented in a similar wastewater aqueous solution using a non-thermal plasma reactor in a coaxial dielectric barrier discharge. The novelty of the work is that one of the electrodes of the reactor has the shape of a hollow screw which shows an enhanced efficiency compared with a traditional smooth structure. The experimentation was carried out with gas mixtures of 90% Ar-10% O2, 80% At-20% 02 and 0% Ar-100% 02. After one hour of treatment the removal efficiency was 76%, 92%, and 97%, respectively, assessed with a gas chromatographic mass spectrometry technique. For both reactors used, the ozone concentration was measured. The screw electrode required less energy, for all gas mixtures, than the smooth electrode, to maintain the same ozone concentration. On the other hand, it was also observed that in both electrodes the electrical conductivity of the solution changed slightly from ,-0.0115 S m^-1 up to -0.0430 S m^-1 after one hour of treatment. The advantages of using the hollow screw electrode structure compared with the smooth electrode were： （1） lower typical power consumption, （2） the generation of a uniform plasma throughout the reactor benefiting the phenol degradation, （3） a relatively lower temperature of the aqueous solution during the process, and （4） the plasma generation length is larger.

Preparation of microparticles and nanoparticles using membrane-assisted dispersion,micromixing,and evaporation processes

Synthetic microporous membranes are increasingly used for energy-efficient and controlled production of micro-and nanoparticles and micro-and nanoemulsions with tuneable morphology and physico-chemical properties through various micromixing,emulsification,and evaporation processes.In emul-sification processes,the membrane pores are used for dispersed phase injection and size-controlled generation of droplets and droplet-templated particles.In micromixing processes,membrane is utilised as a micromixer for mixing two miscible liquids,usually solvent and antisolvent-rich solutions,which leads to the creation of supersaturation and subsequent nanoprecipitation or crystallisation.In mem-brane evaporation processes,membrane is used to prevent phase dispersion while allowing efficient molecular diffusion of solvent and/or antisolvent vapour through gas-filled pores.Membrane dispersion processes can be operated continuously by decoupling shear stress on the membrane surface from cross flow using tube insets,flow pulsations,swirling flow,membrane oscillations or membrane rotations.Droplet generation and solidification can be performed continuously in a single pass by connecting membrane module with a downstream reactor.Membrane dispersion processes can be used for pro-duction of nanoparticles such as nanovesicles(liposomes,micelles,ethosomes,and niosomes),nanogels,polymeric,lipid and metallic nanoparticles,and nanocrystals.The main advantages of membrane-assisted particle generation are in low energy consumption,controlled geometry and hydrodynamic conditions at the microscale level,flexible throughput due to modular and scalable design of membrane devices,and a wide choice of available microporous membranes with various wall porosities,wetta-bilities,pore sizes,and pore morphologies to suit different applications.