Discharge and mass transfer characteristics of atmospheric pressure gas-solid two-phase gliding arc

In this work,a gas-solid two-phase gliding arc discharge(GS-GAD)reactor was built.Gliding arc was formed in the gap between the blade electrodes,and solid powder was deposited on the sieve plate positioned beneath the blade electrodes.A range of experimental parameters,including the inter-electrode spacing,gas flow rate,applied voltage,and the type of the powder,were systematically varied to elucidate the influence of solid powder matter on the dynamics of gliding arc discharge(GAD).The discharge images were captured by ICCD and digital camera to investigate the mass transfer characteristics of GS-GAD,and the electrical parameters,such as the effective values of voltage,current,and discharge power were record to reveal the discharge characteristics of GS-GAD.The results demonstrate that powder undergoes spontaneous movement towards the upper region of the gliding arc due to the influence of electric field force.Increasing the discharge voltage,decreasing relative dielectric constant of the powder and reducing the electrode-to-sieve-plate distance all contribute to a greater involvement of powder in the GAD process,subsequently resulting in an enhanced powder concentration within the GAD region.Additionally,powder located beneath the gliding arc experiences downward resistance caused by the opposing gas flow and arc.Excessive gas flow rate notably hampers the powder concentration within the discharge region,and the velocity of powder motion in the upper part of the GAD region is reduced.Under the condition of electrode-to-sieve-plate distance of 30 mm,gas flow rate of 1.5 L/min,and peak-to-peak voltage of 31 kV,the best combination of arc gliding and powder spark discharge phenomena can be achieved with the addition of Al_(2)O_(3) powder.

Investigation of paint removal by atmospheric pressure plasma jet

Acrylic polyurethane paint on the surface of 2A12 Al alloy was cleaned utilizing an atmospheric pressure plasma jet in this work.The dynamic evolution of the paint removal process during plasma treatment with time was explored through analysis of morphology and chemical states.The results showed that although the thickness of paint could be reduced effectively with an increase in cleaning time,the removal rate of paint gradually decreased with time.During the initial cleaning process range,its original smooth morphology of paint turned rugged quickly and was almost unchanged with further plasma treatment.Element and chemical state analysis showed that the content of C in the paint layer decreased obviously after plasma treatment.In contrast,the O content increased remarkably.The cleaning mechanism could be mainly attributed to the reaction between active O-containing species in air plasma and organic components in the paint.After removal of superficial organic matter,residue inorganic metal oxide substances aggregated on the base.The exposed metal oxides on the one hand elevated the superficial O content,but on the other hand hindered further plasma penetration,resulting in a gradual decrease in cleaning rate with cleaning time.Therefore,physical wiping was proposed to be incorporated with the plasma method and effective removal of paint was realized.

Study of Non-Thermal DC Arc Plasma of CH_4/Ar at Atmospheric Pressure Using Optical Emission Spectroscopy and Mass Spectrometry

Non-thermal C/H/Ar plasmas are widely applied to carbonaceous material production and processing.In this work,plasma parameters and gaseous species of the atmospheric non-thermal C/H/Ar plasmas produced by an atmospheric-pressure DC arc discharge generator in CH_4/Ar were investigated.The voltage-current characteristics were measured for different CH_4/Ar ratios.Optical emission spectroscopy was employed to analyze the electron excitation temperature,gas temperature and electron density under various discharge conditions.The hydrocarbon molecules produced in the CH4/Ar plasmas were detected with photoionization mass spectrometry.The optical spectral results demonstrated that the electron excitation temperature was 0.4-1 eV,the gas temperature was 2800-4200 K and the electron density was in the range of（5-20）×10^15 cm^-3.The mass spectrum indicated that a variety of unsaturated hydrocarbons（C2H4,C3H6,C6H6,etc.） and several highly unsaturated hydrocarbons（C4H2,C5H6,etc.） were produced in the non-thermal arc plasmas.

A homogeneous atmospheric pressure air plasma in a 10 mm gap based on a three-electrode configuration

Generation of atmospheric pressure homogeneous air plasma in a large gap(>4 mm)is a challenge.In this study,an atmospheric pressure homogeneous air plasma generated in a gap up to 10 mm is reported,which is based on a three-electrode configuration,where a high-voltage(HV)electrode and a middle electrode form a surface dielectric barrier discharge(S-DBD),and together with the ground electrode form the main volume discharge.High-speed photographs confirm that the discharge in the main gap is homogeneous.The gas temperature of the plasma estimated from the N_(2)(C^(3)∏_(u)-B^(3)∏_(g))(Δv=-2)emission is about 320 K,which is close to room temperature.A detailed analysis shows that the discharge ignited between the HV electrode and the middle electrode is serving as an electron source,and the electrons deposited on the dielectric plate are due to the S-DBD along with the applied voltage generating a driving force,which results in a high concentration of seed electrons in the main gap and induces the homogeneous plasma.Further analysis shows that the electric field in the main gap is only about18.45 k V·cm^(-1),which is much lower than the typical breakdown electric field of 30 k V·cm^(-1)for atmospheric pressure air discharge.

Compared discharge characteristics and film modifications of atmospheric pressure plasma jets with two different electrode geometries

Atmospheric pressure plasma jet shows great potential for polymer film processing. The electrode geometry is the key factor to determine discharge characteristics and film modification of jets. In this paper, we compared the discharge characteristics and the film modifications of atmospheric pressure plasma jets with needle-ring electrode(NRE) and doublering electrode(DRE). The results show that jet with NRE has stronger electric field intensity and higher discharge power,making it present more reactive oxygen particles and higher electron temperature, but its discharge stability is insufficient.In contrast, the jet with DRE has uniform electric field distribution of lower field intensity, which allows it to maintain stable discharge over a wide range of applied voltages. Besides, the modification results show that the treatment efficiency of PET film by NRE is higher than that by DRE. These results provide a suitable atmospheric pressure plasma jets device selection scheme for polymer film processing process.

Atmospheric pressure pulsed modulated arc discharge plasma

Direct-current(DC)arc plasma has great application values in the field of the chemical industry,but it has the problem of low energy efficiency.Facing the requirement for improving the energy efficiency of the arc,this paper proposes a unique method of pulsed modulated arc(PMA).This method uses high-frequency pulses and reduces the arc current to improve the control of electron temperature.The electrical characteristics,optical characteristics and products are tested.The test results show that during the PMA process,all of the experimental results which include voltage,current and light will significantly increase.These results are analyzed from the perspective of functionality,repeatability and energy conversion.The analysis results show that although the PMA method does not show good parameter consistency,it has potential application prospects because it increases the energy conversion rate by 4.5%and 8%from the perspective of light and products,respectively.

Enhanced antibacterial activity of cotton via silver nanocapsules deposited by atmospheric pressure plasma jet

In this work,the antibacterial activity of cotton containing silver nanocapsules prepared by atmospheric pressure plasma(APP)deposition is investigated.The nanocapsules consist of a shell and a silver nanoparticle(Ag NP)core,where the core is used to bring antibacterial activity,and the shell is utilized to suppress the potential toxicity of Ag NPs.The surface morphology and the elements of the samples are analyzed by scanning electron microscopy(SEM),energy dispersive x-ray and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS).The SEM results show that the skin of the cotton fibers will fall off gradually after APP treatment over 3 min,and the XPS results show that the Ag content will rise to 1.6%after APP deposition for 10 min.Furthermore,the antimicrobial activity tests show that the reduction rates of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus can achieve 100%when the sample is treated for 10 min,which exhibits excellent antibacterial activity.In addition,the UV absorption properties of the cotton will also be correspondingly improved,which brings a broader application prospect for antibacterial cotton.

The effects of radio frequency atmospheric pressure plasma and thermal treatment on the hydrogenation of TiO_(2) thin film

The effects of radio frequency(RF)atmospheric pressure(AP)He/H_(2)plasma and thermal treatment on the hydrogenation of TiO_(2)thin films were investigated and compared in this work.The color of the original TiO_(2)film changes from white to black after being hydrogenated in He/H_(2)plasma at160 W(gas temperature~381℃)within 5 min,while the color of the thermally treated TiO_(2)film did not change significantly even in pure H_(2)or He/H_(2)atmosphere with higher temperature(470℃)and longer time(30 min).This indicated that a more effective hydrogenation reaction happened through RF AP He/H_(2)plasma treatment than through pure H_(2)or He/H_(2)thermal treatment.The color change of TiO_(2)film was measured based on the Commission Internationale d’Eclairage L*a*b*color space system.Hydrogenated TiO_(2)film displayed improved visible light absorption with increased plasma power.The morphology of the cauliflower-like nanoparticles of the TiO_(2)film surface remained unchanged after plasma processing.X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results showed that the contents of Ti3+species and Ti-OH bonds in the plasma-hydrogenated black TiO_(2)increased compared with those in the thermally treated TiO_(2).X-ray diffraction(XRD)patterns and Raman spectra indicated that plasma would destroy the crystal structure of the TiO_(2)surface layer,while thermal annealing would increase the overall crystallinity.The different trends of XRD and Raman spectra results suggested that plasma modification on the TiO_(2)surface layer is more drastic than on its inner layer,which was also consistent with transmission electron microscopy results.Optical emission spectra results suggest that numerous active species were generated during RF AP He/H_(2)plasma processing,while there were no peaks detected from thermal processing.A possible mechanism for the TiO_(2)hydrogenation process by plasma has been proposed.Numerous active species were generated in the bulk plasma region,accelerated in the sheath region,and bumped toward the TiO_(2)film,which will react with the TiO_(2)surface to form OVs and disordered layers.This leads to the tailoring of the band gap of black TiO_(2)and causes its light absorption to extend into the visible region.

Polysilicon Prepared from SiCl_4 by Atmospheric-Pressure Non-Thermal Plasma

Non-thermal plasma at atmospheric pressure was explored for the preparation of polysilicon from SiCl4. The power supply sources of positive pulse and alternating current （8 kHz and 100 kHz） were compared for polysilicon preparation. The samples prepared by using the 100 kHz power source were crystalline silicon. The effects of H2 and SiCl4 volume fractions were investigated. The optical emission spectra showed that silicon species played an important role in polysilicon deposition

Use of a Microwave Plasma Process at Atmospheric Pressure for Bacterial Inactivation without Thermal Effects

An atmospheric microwave plasma argon was used for the inactivation of bacteria E. coli. The employed device, called Axial Injection Torch (or TIA for Torche à Injection Axiale), consisted of a microwave power source, a waveguide and a gas supply system. Using this argon plasma source, we studied the effects of the exposure time, the exposure distance, the input power, and the gas flow rate on the reduction rate of Escherichia coli cells. The first part of the study was carried out with a static sample exposed to the plasma and then in the second part the sample was set in motion relative to the plasma jet. A log reduction number of E. coli of 4 (10-4 CFU/mL) was obtained with UV and active species, for UV only a log of 1 (10-1 CFU/mL) was obtained.

Bacteria Inactivation Using DBD Plasma Jet in Atmospheric Pressure Argon

A coaxial dielectric barrier discharge plasma jet was designed, which can be operated in atmospheric pressure argon under an intermediate frequency sinusoidal resonant power supply, and an atmospheric pressure glow-like discharge was achieved. Two kinds of typical bacteria, i.e., the Staphylococcus aureus （S. aureus） and Escherichia coil （E. coil）, were employed to study the bacterial inactivation mechanism by means of the non-thermal plasma. The killing log value （KLV） of S. aureus reached up to 5.38 with a treatment time of 90 s and that of E. coil up to 5.36 with 60 s, respectively. According to the argon emission spectra of the plasma jet and the scanning electron microscope （SEM） images of the two bacteria before and after the plasma treatment, it is concluded that the reactive species in the argon plasma played a major role in the bacterial inactivation, while the heat, electric field and UV photons had little effect.

Two-dimensional numerical study of an atmospheric pressure helium plasma jet with dual-power electrode

In this paper, the characteristics of an atmospheric pressure helium plasma jet generated by a dual-power electrode （DPE） configuration are investigated by using a two-dimensional fluid model. The effect of a needle electrode on the discharge is studied by comparing the results of the DPE configuration with those of the single ring electrode configuration. It is found that the existence of the needle leads to the generation of a helium plasma jet with a higher propagation velocity, higher species density, and larger discharge width. Furthermore, the influences of the needle radius and needle-to-ring discharge gap on the generation of a plasma jet are also studied. The simulation results indicate that the needle electrode has an evident influence on the plasma jet characteristics.

Efficacy of Atmospheric Pressure Plasma as an Antibacterial Agent Against Enterococcus Faecalis in Vitro

Enterococcus faecalis （E. faecalis） is a microorganism that can survive extreme challenges in obturated root canals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma plume against E. faecalis in vitro. A non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma jet device which could generate a cold plasma plume carrying a peak current of 300 mA was used. The antibacterial efficacy of this device against E. faecalis and its biofihn un- der different conditions was detected. The antibacterial efficacy of the plasma against E. faecalis and Staphylococcus aureus （S. aureus） was also evaluated. After plasma treatment, the average diameter of inhibition zone on S. aureus and E. faecalis was 2.62±0.26 cm and 1.06±0.30 cm, respectively （P 〈 0.05）. The diameter was increased with prolongation of the treatment dura- tion. The diameters of inhibition zone of the sealed Petri dishes were larger than those of the uncovered Petri dishes. There was significant difference in colony-forming units between plasma group and control group on E. faecalis biofilm （P 〈 0.01）. The transmission electron microscopy revealed that the ultrastructural changes eytoderm of E. faecalis were observed after treatment for 2min. It is concluded that the non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma could serve as an effective adjunct to standard endodontie microbial treatment.

Study on an Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet and its Application in Etching Photo-Resistant Materials

An atmospheric pressure radio-frequency plasma jet that can eject cold plasma has been developed. In this paper, the configuration of this type of plasma jet is illustrated and its discharge characteristics curves are studied with a current and a voltage probe. A thermal couple is used to measure the temperature distribution along the axis of the jet stream. The temperature distribution curve is generated for the He/O-2 jet stream at the discharge power of 150 W. This jet can etch the photo-resistant material at an average rate of 100 nm/min on the surface of silicon wafers at a right angle.

Atmospheric pressure gliding arc discharge plasma treatments for improving germination, growth and yield of wheat

Wheat （Triticum aestivum） seeds were treated with atmospheric pressure gliding arc discharge plasmas to investigate the effects on water absorption, seed germination rate, seedling growth and yield in wheat. The surface architectures and functionalities of the seeds were found to modify due to plasma treatments. 6 rain treatment was provided 95%-100% germination rate. For the treatment duration of 3 and 9 rain the growth activity, dry matter accumulation, leaves chlorophyll contents, longest spikes, number of spikes/spikelet and total soluble protein content in shoots were improved. The grain yield of wheat was increased ,--20% by 6 min treatment with H2O/O2 plasma with respect to control.

Atmospheric Pressure Cold Argon/Oxygen Plasma Jet Assisted by Preionization of Syringe Needle Electrode

An atmospheric pressure nonequilibrium argon/oxygen plasma jet assisted by the preionization of syringe needle electrode discharge is reported. With the syringe needle plasma as its pre-ionization source, the hybrid barrier-jet was shown to generate uniform discharge with a lower breakdown voltage and a relatively low gas temperature varying from 390 K to 440 K, even when the vol.% oxygen in argon was up to 6%. Utilizing the actinometry method, the concentration of atomic oxygen was estimated to be about in an orders of magnitude of 10^17 cm^-3. The argon/oxygen plasma jet was then employed to clean out heat transfer oil, with a maximum cleaning rate of 0.1 mm/s achieved.

Sterilization of Staphylococcus Aureus by an Atmospheric Non-Thermal Plasma Jet

An atmospheric non-thermal plasma jet was developed for sterilizing the Staphylococcus aureus （S. aureus）. The plasma jet was generated by dielectric barrier discharge （DBD）, which was characterized by electrical and optical diagnostics. The survival curves of the bacteria showed that the plasma jet could effectively inactivate 10 6 cells of S. aureus within 120 seconds and the sterilizing efficiency depended critically on the discharge parameter of the applied voltage. It was further confirmed by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） that the cell morphology was seriously damaged by the plasma treatment. The plasma sterilization mechanism of S. aureus was attributed to the active species of OH, N 2 ＋ and O, which were generated abundantly in the plasma jet and characterized by OES. Our findings suggest a convenient and low-cost way for sterilization and inactivation of bacteria.

Introduction of a new atmospheric pressure plasma device and application on tomato seeds

We designed new atmospheric pressure plasma device, to explore appropriate voltage of plasma treatment that promote traits and yield of to-mato, tomato seeds were treated by plasma at 4760 to 6800 V, and traits and yield of tomato were observed. The results showed that the ef-fects of different voltage plasma treatments on seed germination were not the same. The bloom times, the height, the caulis, the extent of the plants and the average weight, length,diameter of each fruit in the seven treatment groups from 4760 to 6800 V were increased distinctly. The tomato yields of seven different plasma voltage treated groups were increased than the un-treated (CK). In most indexes of our tests, ef-fects of (5440 ~ 6120 V) plasma voltage treat-ments were better than of other voltages, the best was 6120 V plasma voltage treatment. So the tomato yield increase and the most the botany properties of the tomato are improved. The discharges were not uniform and the pow-ers were lower in low voltages (4760 ~ 5100V), and the discharge powers were higher in high voltages (6460 ~ 6800V). There was a step un-altered violet blue light from 5440V to 6120V, it was nearly uniform discharges, it maybe due to the energy of the electron and the active air particles in the plasma increasing with atmos-pheric plasma voltage adding, more electric charges are produced per unit time and cannot be neutralized at once, which can strengthen the reaction between the active air particles and seeds. The active air particles and ultraviolet radiation can penetrate into the capsule of the seeds,accelerate to decompose the inner nu-triment of the seeds, reduce relative penetrabil-ity of cell velum, improve the activities of the root of the tomato seedling. Test data of fruit yield of the tomato are consistent with the sta-tistical regressive line.

Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet in Ar and O_2/Ar Mixtures:Properties and High Performance for Surface Cleaning

An atmospheric pressure plasma jet generated in Ar and O2/Ar mixtures has been investigated by specially designed equipment with double power electrodes at 20~32 kHz, and their effects on the cleaning of surfaces have been studied. Properties of the jet discharge are studied by electrical diagnostics, including the waveform of discharge voltage, discharge current and the Q-V Lissajous figures. The optical emission spectroscopy is used to measure the plasma parameters, such as the excitation temperature and the gas temperature. It is found that the consumed power and the excitation temperature increase with increase of the discharge frequency. On the other hand, at the same discharge frequency, these parameters in O2/Ar mixture plasma are found to be much larger. The effect on surface cleaning is studied from the changes in the contact angle. For Ar plasma jet, the contact angle decreases with increase of the discharge frequency. For O2/Ar mixture plasma jet, the contact angle decreases with increase of discharge frequency up to 26 kHz, however, further increase of discharge frequency does not show further decrease in the contact angle. At the same discharge frequency, the contact angle after O2/Ar mixture plasma cleaning is found to be much lower compared to the case of pure Ar. From the results of quadrupole mass-spectrum analysis, we can identify more fragment molecules of CO and H2O in the emitted gases after O2/Ar plasma jet treatment compared with Ar plasma jet treatment, which are produced by the decomposition of surface organic contaminants during the cleaning process.

Experimental Study on Surface Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma Actuator with Different Encapsulated Electrode Widths for Airflow Control at Atmospheric Pressure

The surface dielectric barrier discharge （SDBD） plasma actuator has shown great promise as an aerodynamic flow control device. In this paper, the encapsulated electrode width of a SDBD actuator is changed to study the airflow acceleration behavior. The effects of encapsulated electrode width on the actuator performance are experimentally investigated by measuring the dielectric layer surface potential, time-averaged ionic wind velocity and thrust force. Experimental results show that the airflow velocity and thrust force increase with the encapsulated electrode width. The results can be attributed to the distinct plasma distribution at different encapsulated electrode widths.