Surface charge characteristics in a three-electrode surface dielectric barrier discharge

The surface charge characteristics in a three-electrode surface dielectric barrier discharge(SDBD)are experimentally investigated based on the Pockels effect of an electro-optical crystal. The actuator is based on the most commonly used SDBD structure for airflow control, with an exposed electrode supplied with sinusoidal AC high voltage, a grounded encapsulated electrode and an additional exposed electrode downstream supplied with DC voltage. The ionic wind velocity and thrust can be significantly improved by increasing DC voltage although the plasma discharge characteristics are virtually unaffected. It is found that the negative charges generated by the discharge of the three-electrode structure accumulate on the dielectric surface significantly further downstream in an AC period compared to the actuator with a two-electrode structure. The negative charges in the downstream region increase as the DC voltage increases.In addition, the DC voltage affects the time required for the positive charge filaments to decay.The positive DC voltage expands the ionic acceleration zone downstream to produce a greater EHD force. The amplitude of the DC voltage affects the electric field on the dielectric surface and is therefore a key factor in the formation of the EHD force. Further research on the surface charge characteristics of a three-electrode structure has been conducted using a pulse power to drive the discharge, and the same conclusions are drawn. This work demonstrates a link between surface charge characteristics and EHD performance of a three-electrode SDBD actuator.

Formation mechanism of bright and dark concentric-ring pattern in dielectric barrier discharge

In this work,a bright and dark concentric-ring pattern is reported in a dielectric barrier discharge for the first time.The spatiotemporal dynamics of the bright and dark concentric-ring pattern are investigated with an intensified charge-coupled device and photomultiplier tubes.The results indicate that the bright and dark concentric-ring pattern is composed of three concentric-ring sublattices.These are bright concentric-ring structures,dark concentric-ring structures and wider concentric-ring structures,respectively.The bright concentric-ring structures and dark concentricring structures are alternately distributed.The bright concentric-ring structures are located at the centre of the wider concentric-ring structures.The wider concentric-ring structures first form from the outer edge and gradually develop to the centre.The essence of all three concentric-ring structures is the individual discharge filaments.The optical emission spectra of different sublattices are acquired and analysed.It is found that the plasma parameters of the three concentricring sublattices are different.Finally,the formation mechanism of the bright and dark concentricring pattern is discussed.

Discharge mode and particle transport in radio frequency capacitively coupled Ar/O_(2) plasma discharges

Simulations are conducted on capacitively coupled Ar/O_(2)mixed gas discharges employing a one-dimensional fluid coupled with an electron Monte Carlo(MC)model.The research explores the impact of different O_(2)ratio and pressures on the discharge characteristics of Ar/O_(2)plasma.At a fixed Ar/O_(2)gas ratio,with the increasing pressure,higher ion densities,as well as a slight increase in electron density in the bulk region can be observed.The discharge remains dominated by the drift-ambipolar(DA)mode,and the flux of O(3P)at the electrode increases with the increasing pressure due to higher background gas density,while the fluxes of O(1D)and Ardecrease due to the pronounced loss rate.With the increasing proportion of O_(2),a change in the dominant discharge mode from a mode to DA mode can be detected,and the O_(2)-associated charged particle densities are significantly increased.However,Ar+density shows a trend of increasing and then decreasing,while for neutral fluxes at the electrode,Arflux decreases,and O(3P)flux increases with the reduced Ar gas proportion,while trends in O(1D)flux show slight differences.The evolution of the densities of the charged particle and the neutral fluxes under different discharge parameters are discussed in detail using the ionization characteristics as well as the transport properties.Hopefully,more comprehensive understanding of Ar/O_(2)discharge characteristics in this work will provide a valuable reference for the industry.

Simulation analysis on microscopic discharge characteristics of the bipolar corona of a floating conductor

A floating conductor exhibits a bipolar corona phenomenon with microscopic discharge characteristics that are still unclear.In this study,a plasma simulation model of the bipolar corona with 108 chemical reaction equations is established by combining hydrodynamics and plasma chemical reactions.The evolution characteristics of electrons,positive ions,negative ions and neutral particles,as well as the distribution characteristics of space charges are analyzed,and the evolutionary flow of microscopic particles is summarized.The results indicate that the positive end of the bipolar corona initiates discharge before the negative end,but the plasma chemistry at the negative end is more vigorous.The electron generation rate can reach 1240 mol(m^(3) s)^(-1),and the dissipation rate can reach 34 mol(m^(3) s)^(-1).The positive ion swarm is dominated by O_(4)^(+),and the maximum generation rate can reach 440 mol((m^(3) s)^(-1).The negative ion swarm is mainly O_(2) and O_(4).The O_(2) content is approximately 1.5-3 times that of O_(4),and the maximum reaction rate can reach 51 mol(m^(3) s)^(-1).The final destination of neutral particles is an accumulation in the form of O_(3) and NO,and the amount of O3 produced is approximately 4-6 times that of NO.The positive end of the bipolar corona is dominated by positive space charges,which continue to develop and spread outwards in the form of a pulse wave.The negative end exhibits a space charge distribution structure of concentrated positive charges and diffused negative charges.The validity of the microscopic simulation analysis is verified by the macroscopic discharge phenomenon.

A Repetitive Nanosecond Pulse Source for Generation of Large Volume Streamer Discharge

Using a unipolar pulse with the rise time and the pulse duration in the order of microsecond as the primary pulse, a nanosecond pulse with the repetitive frequency of several kilohertz is generated by a spark gap switch. By varying both the inter-pulse duration and the pulse frequency, the voltage recovery rate of the spark gap switch is investigated at different working conditions such as the gas pressure, the gas composition as well as the bias voltage. The results reveal that either increase in gas pressure or addition of SF6 to the air can increase the voltage recovery rate. The effect of gas composition on the voltage recovery rate is discussed based on the transferring and distribution of the residual space charges. The repetitive nanosecond pulse source is also applied to the generation of large volume, and the discharge currents are measured to investigate the effect of pulse repetition rate on the large volume streamer discharge.

Experiment Study on the Ending Criteria of Charge and Discharge of Nickel-Hydride Battery

Charge and discharge characteristics of Ni/MH batteries are investigated with experiments. During battery’s working, the voltage, capacity, temperature and internal resistance were recorded, corresponding curves were depicted. Variations of the aforementioned four parameters are differently obvious. Ending criteria of charge and discharge of Ni/MH batteries are discussed on the basis of the curves. Voltage, capacity and temperature of a battery can be used as ending criteria during charge. When discharge takes place, voltage, capacity and internal resistance can be chosen as ending criteria. As a whole, capacity is more suitable for being used as ending criteria of charge and discharge than the other three parameters. At last, the capacity of a battery is recommended to be ending criteria of charge and discharge. The conclusions will provide references to different capacity Ni/MH batteries for electric vehicles.

Influence of the Gas Mixture Ratio on the Correlations Between the Excimer XeCl Emission and the Sealed Gas Temperature in Dielectric Barrier Discharge Lamps

For dielectric barrier discharge lamps filled with various gas mixture ratios, the correlations between the excimer XeCl* emission and the sealed gas temperature have been founded, and a qualitative explication is presented. For gas mixture with chlorine larger than 3%, the emission intensity increases with the sealed gas temperature, while with chlorine about 2%, the emission intensity decreases with the increase in the gas temperature, and could be improved by cooling water. However, if chlorine is less than 1.5%, the discharge appears to be a mixture mode with filaments distributed in a diffused glow-like discharge, and the UV emission is independent on the gas temperature.

Study of the influence of discharge loop parameters on anode side on generation characteristics of metal plasma jet in a pulsed vacuum discharge

In a pulsed vacuum discharge,the ejection performance of a metal plasma jet can be effectively improved by preventing charged particles from moving to the anode.In this paper,the effects of resistance and capacitance on the anode side on the discharge characteristics and the generation characteristics of plasma jet are investigated.Results show that the existence of a resistor on the anode side can increase the anode potential,thereby preventing charged particles from entering the anode and promoting the ejection of charged particles along the axis of the insulating sleeve nozzle.The application of a capacitor on the anode side can not only absorb electrons at the initial stage of discharge,increasing the peak value of the cathode hump potential,but also prevent charged particles from moving to the anode,thereby improving the ejection performance of the plasma jet.In addition,the use of a larger resistance and a smaller capacitance can improve the blocking effect on charged particles and further improve the ejection performance of the plasma jet.Results of this study will provide a reference for the improvement of the ejection performance of plasma jets and their applications.

A criterion for flow mechanisms through vertical sharp-edged orifice and model for the orifice discharge coefficient

According to the experimental data of the orifice discharge coefficient for the flow through a vertical sharp-edged orifice obtained in the previous study of this work,a theoretical criterion for flow mechanisms of small orifice（viz.thick-walled orifice and nozzle） and large orifice（viz.thin-walled orifice） was proposed based on the ratio of orifice diameter to plate thickness.It can help explain the dissipation of the mechanical energy loss in the flow process for the two flow mechanisms under different operating regimes.The main parameters such as orifice diameter,plate thickness and liquid head were correlated,and a semi-empirical model for orifice coefficient and an empirical model with high precision at the stable region were developed.

Determining the Charge-to-Mass Ratio of the Electron

The aim of this lab was to determine an experimental value for the charge-to-mass ratio e/me of the electron. In order to do this, an assembly consisting of Helmholtz coils and a helium-filled fine beam tube containing an electron gun was used. Electrons were accelerated from rest by the electron gun at a voltage of 201.3 V kept constant across trials. When the accelerated electrons collided with the helium atoms in the fine beam tube, the helium atoms entered an excited state and released energy as light. Since the Helmholtz coils put the electrons into centripetal motion, this resulted in a circular beam of light, the radius of which was measured by taking a picture and using photo analysis. This procedure was used to test currents through the Helmholtz coils ranging from 1.3 A to 1.7 A in increments of 0.1 A. Using a linearization of these data, the experimental value for the charge-to-mass ratio of the electron was found to be 1.850 × 1011 C/kg, bounded between 1.440 × 1011 C/kg and 2.465 × 1011 C/kg. This range of values includes the accepted value of 1.759 × 1011 C/kg, and yields a percent error of 5.17%. The rather low percent error is a testament to the accuracy of this procedure. During this experiment, the orientation of the ambient magnetic field due to the Earth at the center of the apparatus was not considered. In the future, it would be worthwhile to repeat this procedure, taking care to position the Helmholtz coils in such a way to negate the effects of the Earth’s magnetic field on the centripetal motion of electrons.

Characteristics of charge and discharge of PMMA samples due to electron irradiation

In this study, using a comprehensive numerical simulation of charge and discharge processes, we investigate the formation and evolution of negative charge and discharge characteristics of a grounded PMMA film irradiated by a non- focused electron beam. Electron scattering and transport processes in the sample are simulated with the Monte Carlo and the finite-different time-domain （FDTD） methods, respectively. The properties of charge and discharge processes are presented by the evolution of internal currents, charge quantity, surface potential, and discharge time. Internal charge accumulation in the sample may reach saturation by primary electron （PE） irradiation providing the charge duration is enough. Internal free electrons will run off to the ground in the form of leakage current due to charge diffusion and drift during the discharge process after irradiation, while trapped electrons remain. The negative surface potential determined by the charging quantity decreases to its saturation in the charge process, and then increases in the discharge process. A larger thickness of the PMMA film will result in greater charge amount and surface potential in charge saturation and in final discharge state, while the electron mobility of the material has little effects on the final discharge state. Moreover, discharge time is less for smaller thickness or larger electron mobility. The presented results can be helpful for estimating and weakening the charging of insulating samples especially under the intermittent electron beam irradiation in related surface analysis or measurement.

Decay characters of charges on an insulator surface after different types of discharge

In an insulating system including solid and gas dielectrics, discharge type has a strong impact on charge accumulation at the interface between two dielectrics, and hence charge decay. In order to clarify the influence, a surface charge measurement system was constructed, and three types of discharge, i.e. surface discharge, and low intensity and high intensity coronas, were introduced to cause surface charge accumulation. The decay behavior of surface charges after different types of discharge was obtained at various temperatures. It was found that total surface charges monotonically decreased with time, and the decay rate became larger as temperature increased. However, after a surface discharge or a high intensity corona, surface charge density in the local area appeared to fluctuate during the decay process. Compared with this, the fluctuation of surface charge density was not observed after a low intensity corona. The mechanisms of surface charge accumulation and decay were analysed. Moreover, a microscopic physical model involving charge production, accumulation, and decay was proposed so that the experimental results could be explained.

3D Carbon Frameworks for Ultrafast Charge/Discharge Rate Supercapacitors with High Energy‑Power Density

Carbon-based electric double layer capacitors(EDLCs)hold tremendous potentials due to their high-power performance and excellent cycle stability.However,the practical use of EDLCs is limited by the low energy density in aqueous electrolyte and sluggish diffusion kinetics in organic or/and ionic liquids electrolyte.Herein,3D carbon frameworks(3DCFs)constructed by interconnected nanocages(10-20 nm)with an ultrathin wall of ca.2 nm have been fabricated,which possess high specific surface area,hierarchical porosity and good conductive network.After deoxidization,the deoxidized 3DCF(3DCFDO)exhibits a record low IR drop of 0.064 V at 100 A g^−1 and ultrafast charge/discharge rate up to 10 V s^−1.The related device can be charged up to 77.4%of its maximum capacitance in 0.65 s at 100 A g^−1 in 6 M KOH.It has been found that the 3DCF-DO has a great affinity to EMIMBF4,resulting in a high specific capacitance of 174 F g^−1 at 1 A g^−1,and a high energy density of 34 Wh kg^−1 at an ultrahigh power density of 150 kW kg^−1 at 4 V after a fast charge in 1.11 s.This work provides a facile fabrication of novel 3D carbon frameworks for supercapacitors with ultrafast charge/discharge rate and high energy-power density.

Simulation Studies of Rib Structure Effect on Discharge Characteristics of Plasma Display Panel

To investigate the effect of the rib structure on the discharge characteristics of the plasma display panel, the potential distribution, particles density distribution and ions incident angle distribution were examined by simulation of a two-dimensional particle-in-cell/Monte Carlo collision, with two kinds of rib structure： the stripe rib structure and the Waffle rib structure. The results showed that the distribution of electric potential at the corner of the discharge cell was almost the same for these two rib structures while in the centre there was a difference between these two rib structures. The striation phenomenon could be observed in both cases. The distribution of density also indicated that the striation phenomenon was accompanied by the firing of discharge, and the Waffle rib structure might reduce the density humps. In the cell with a stripe rib structure, the profiles of the surface charge density along the sustained dielectric layer presented a better fluctuating distribution than that in the cell with a Waffle rib structure. The spatial potential and particle density in the discharge bulk showed that the Waffle ribs could weaken the striation phenomenon, which could be explained by the decrease in the particle numbers in the discharge cell. The simulation results of the ion incident angle showed that most ions impacted the sustained dielectric layer in the normal stripe rib cell with an incident angle in the range of 6° to 19° while with the Waffle rib structure the incident angle of most ions was in the range of 4° to 19°. The Waffle rib structure did not affect the angle distribution of incident ions significantly.

The enhanced aerosol deposition by bipolar corona discharge arrays

The corona discharges provide an efficient way to induce precipitation or eliminate fog by increasing ion density in the open air.In this paper,one bipolar corona discharge array(positive and negative high voltage coupled simultaneously)which can generate high densities of positive and negative ions is developed.The comparison between bipolar corona discharge array and unipolar corona discharge array(positive or negative coupled only)indicates that bipolar corona discharge array can generate~3 times higher ion density than unipolar corona discharge array.More charged aerosols are produced through collisions between ions and aerosols.The collision rate between aerosols is increased substantially by the attractive forces between positively and negatively charged aerosols.The deposition of aerosols induced by bipolar discharges is 25.7%higher than that of unipolar discharges at the humidity super-saturation condition.Therefore,the bipolar corona discharge system is a new option for the large scale ion sources used for artificial weather modification.

Structural characteristics of spherical Ni(OH)_2 and its charge/discharge process mechanism

Spherical Ni（OH）2 particles were prepared by an aqueous solution precipitation route. The structure of spherical Ni（OH）2 was investigated by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy and compared with that of traditional Ni（OH）2. The results show that the spherical nickel hydroxide consists of （Ni（OH）2） spheres with a reticulate structure of platelet-like, which is almost arranged radially and the crystalline grains intervene and connect with each other to form a three-dimensional net. The spherical Ni（OH）2 particle is full of pores, crannies between cleave planes. It is supposed that this structure is beneficial to the structural stability for the spherical particles during the charge/discharge processes and can improve the cycle life of the electrode; the pores and the crannies in spherical particles can shorten the proton diffusion distance and speed its velocity, which may result in that the local polarization is lowered. The electrochemical performances of the spherical Ni（OH）2 are improved by enhancing the conducting properties of the crystalline lattice due to its quick proton diffusion.

Theoretical Study on Electronic Gain-and-loss Properties of TEMPO and Its Derivates in Charge/Discharge Processes

Theoretical study on the electronic structures and related properties of 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl- l-piperidinyloxy （TEMPO） and its cationic lipid derivates in the charge/discharge processes has been carried out using the density functional theory （DFT） at the （U）B3LYP/6-31G（d,p） or 6-31＋G（d,p） level. The changes and regularities of geometric and electronic properties of these compounds in the charge/discharge processes were revealed in detail. The compu- tational results show that the substitute group plays a very important role in the electronic structures and related properties of TEMPOs during the charge/discharge processes. It is very interesting to find that after getting an electron, TEMPO is more stable in singlet state but the lipid is more stable in triplet state. For TEMPO, both the charge and the discharge processes greatly influence the electronic properties of N and O atoms of the radical part. For the cationic lipid, the discharge process mainly influences the pyridinium head and the charge process mainly influences the free radical head. Moreover, the solvent effect plays an important role in some bond lengths and the charge population of the free radical head. In addition, the UV-Vis absorption spectra simulated using TDDFT at the 6-31G（d,p） with the experimental ones. of TEMPO and the lipid were calculated and or 6-31＋G（d,p） level, in satisfying agreement

Charge-discharge process of MnO_2 supercapacitor

Mechanochemical synthesis of α-MnO2 was carried out with KMnO4 and Mn(CH3COO)2 in 1:1 mole ratio. The electrochemical performance of MnO2 electrode was investigated by cyclic voltammograms and alternating current impedance. The charge-discharge process of MnO2 supercapacitor in 6 mol/L KOH was studied within 1.2 V at 200 mA/g, suggesting that it displays double-layer capacibility in low potential scope and pseudo-capacitance properties in high potential scope. It is found that Mn3O4, an electrochemical inert, mainly forms in the initial 40 charge-discharge cycles. During cycling, the pseudo-capacitance properties disappear and the discharge curves are close to ideal ones, indicating double-layer capability. The maximum capacitance of MnO2 electrode is as high as 416 F/g, and retains 240 F/g after 200 cycles. The equivalent series resistance increases from 17 to 41 Ω.

Investigations on Discharge and Decomposition Characteristics of SF6 Under Various Experimental Conditions

Detection of gas decomposition products is widely used for condition diagnosis of SF6-insulated equipment because of its an- ti-electromagnetic-interference ability and high sensitivity. Previous investigations show that the volume of gas chamber influences the types and concentrations of SF6 decomposition products. Therefore using a newly developed dual gas chromatography (GC) detection sys- tem we investigated the discharge and decomposition of SF6 in a discharge chamber with its volume close to that of the real chambers in GIS. Tests in the chamber were performed with different applied voltage, different electrode arrangements, and different defect types. For discharge between needle-to-plane electrodes, the typical gas decomposition products are SO2F2, SO2 and S2OF10. A near linear growth with the increase of voltage duration is found in the concentration of SO2F2, whereas the growth rates of SO2 and S2OF10 concentration decrease with time. Concentrations of SO2F2, SO2 and S2OF10 at the same voltage duration decrease with the decrease of the voltage amplitude and the increase of the needle-to-plane distance. Change of the gas chamber volume affects the generation rates of SO2F2 and SO2, however not S2OF10. For insulator surface defects, the typical gas decomposition products are CF4, CS2 and SO2. Among which, the concentrations of CF4 and SO2 increase with the voltage duration almost linearly. Moreover, a new parameter that represents the degree of SF6 degradation, the SF6 deterioration ratio, is proposed. In the needle-to-plane case, SF6 deterioration ratio is positively correlated to the fitting value of an averaged discharge capacity. However, the maximum value of SF6 deterioration ratio varies with the defect type.