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.

Effects of Gas Flow Rate on the Discharge Characteristics of a DC Excited Plasma Jet

A direct current（DC） source excited plasma jet consisting of a hollow needle anode and a plate cathode has been developed to form a diffuse discharge plume in ambient air with flowing argon as the working gas.Using optical and electrical methods,the discharge characteristics are investigated for the diffuse plasma plume.Results indicate that the discharge has a pulse characteristic,under the excitation of a DC voltage.The discharge pulse corresponds to the propagation process of a plasma bullet travelling from the anode to the cathode.It is found that,with an increment of the gas flow rate,both the discharge plume length and the current peak value of the pulsed discharge decrease in the laminar flow mode,reach their minima at about1.5 L/min,and then slightly increase in the turbulent mode.However,the frequency of the pulsed discharge increases in the laminar mode with increasing the argon flow rate until the argon flow rate equals to about 1.5 L/min,and then slightly decreases in the turbulent mode.

Effects of direct current discharge on the spatial distribution of cylindrical inductively-coupled plasma at different gas pressures

Stable operations of single direct current （DC） discharge, single radio frequency （RF） discharge and DC ＋ RF hybrid discharge are achieved in a specially-designed DC enhanced inductively- coupled plasma （DCE-ICP） source. Their plasma characteristics, such as electron density, electron temperature and the electron density spatial distribution profiles are investigated and compared experimentally at different gas pressures. It is found that under the condition of single RF discharge, the electron density distribution profiles show a ＇convex＇ shape and ＇saddle＇ shape at gas pressures of 3 mTorr and 150 mTorr respectively. This result can be attributed to the transition of electron kinetics from nonlocal to local kinetics with an increase in gas pressure. Moreover, in the operation of DC q- RF hybrid discharge at different gas pressures, the DC discharge has different effects on plasma uniformity. The plasma uniformity can be improved by modulating DC power at a high pressure of 150 mTorr where local electron kinetics is dominant, whereas plasma uniformity deteriorates at a low pressure of 3 mTorr where nonlocal electron kinetics prevails. This phenomenon, as analyzed, is due to the obvious nonlinear enhancement effect of electron density at the chamber center, and the inherent radial distribution difference in the electron density with single RF discharge at different gas pressures.

Effects of Xe Gas Content and Total Gas Pressure on the Discharge Characteristics of Colour Plasma Display Panels

The effects of the Xe gas content and total gas pressure on the discharge characteristics of colour plasma display panels including the sustaining voltage margin, white-field chromaticity, discharge time lag （DTL）, discharge current peak, and full-width-at-half-maximum （FWHM） of the discharge current pulse, are experimentally studied. The results indicate that as the Xe gas content in the He-Ne-Xe gas mixture or total pressure increases, the sustaining voltage margin increases, the white-field chromaticity improves, and the discharge current peak has a maximum value, while DTL and FWHM have a minimum value. The mean electron energy in the gas mixture discharge is also calculated through a numerical solution of Boltzmann equation. The experimental results are explained from a view of the mean electron energy variations with the Xe gas content and total gas pressure.

Spatio-temporal evolution characteristics and pattern formation of a gas–liquid interfacial AC current argon discharge plasma with a deionized water electrode

A discharge ignited by an AC power source in contact with deionized water as one of the electrodes is investigated.Immediately after initiation,the discharge exhibits a unique phenomenon:the gas-phase discharge is extended into the liquid.Later,a cone-like structure is observed at the liquid surface.Synchronous monitoring of current–voltage characteristics and liquid properties versus time suggests that the discharge shapes are functions of the liquid properties.The spatio-temporal profiles indicate the potential effects of water,ambient air impurities,and metastable argon on the discharge chemistry.This becomes more obvious near the liquid surface due to increasing production of various transient reactive species such as centerdot OH and NO centerdot.Moreover,it is revealed that thermalization of the rotational population distributions of the rotational states(N′⩽6,J′⩽13/2)in the Q1 branch of the OH(A2Σ+,υ′=0→X2Π3/2,υ′′=0)band ro-vibrational system is influenced by the humid environment near the liquid surface.In addition,the transient behaviors of instantaneous concentrations of long-lived reactive species(LRS)such as H2O2,NO−2,and NO−3 are observed with lengthening the discharge time.The production of multiple transient and LRS proposes AC excited gas–liquid argon discharge as a potential applicant in industrial wastewater cleaning,clinical medicine,and agriculture.

Improving the energy efficiency of surface dielectric barrier discharge devices for plasma nitric oxide conversion utilizing active flow control

Improving energy efficiency in plasma NO removal is a critical issue.When the surface dielectric barrier discharge(SDBD)device is considered as a combination of multiple plasma actuators,the induced plasma aerodynamic effect cannot be ignored,which can affect the mass transfer,then affect the chemical reactions.Five SDBD devices with different electrode arrangements are studied for NO conversion.They correspond to different flow patterns.We find that the energy efficiency in an SDBD device with a common structure(Type 1)is 28%lower than that in SDBD devices with a special arrangement(Types 2–5).Two reasons may explain the results.First,fewer active species are produced in Type 1 because the development of discharge is hindered by the mutually exclusive electric field forces caused by the symmetrically distributed charged particles.Second,the plasma wind induced by the plasma actuator can enhance the mass and heat transfer.The mixing of reactants and products is better in Types 2–5 than Type 1 due to higher turbulence kinetic energy.

Formation of Large-Volume High-Pressure Plasma in Triode-Configuration Discharge Devices

A ＂plane cathode micro-hollow anode discharge （PCHAD）＂ is studied in comparison with micro-hollow cathode discharge （MHCD）. A new triode-configuration discharge device is also designed for large-volume, high-pressure glow discharges plasma without glow-to-arc transitions, as well as with an anode metal needle, and a cathode of PCHAD. It has a ＂needle-hole＂ sustained glow discharge. Its discharge circuit employs only one power supply circuit with a variable resistor. The discharge experiments have been carried out in the air. The electrical properties and the photoimages in PCHAD, multi-PCHAD and ＂needle-hole＂ sustained discharge have been investigated. The electrical and the optical measurements show that this triode-configuration discharge device can operate stably at high-pressure, in parallel without individual ballasting resistance. And the electron density of the plasma is estimated to be up to 10^12cm^-3. Compared with the twosupply circuit system, this electrode configuration is very simple with lower cost in generating large-volume plasma at high pressures.

Influence of Additive Gas on Electrical and Optical Characteristics of Non-equilibrium Atmospheric Pressure Argon Plasma Jet

Electrical and optical properties of an argon plasma jet were characterized. In particular, effects of an additive gas, namely nitrogen or oxygen, on these properties were studied in detail. The plasma jet was found to be of a glow-like discharge, which scarcely changed upon the injection of an additive gas, either directly or through a glass capillary. Optical emission spectroscopy characterization revealed that excited argon atoms were the predominant active species in this plasma jet. Metastable argon atoms were highly quenched, and N2（C3yIu） became the main energy carrier following nitrogen injection. When oxygen was added to the afterglow zone through a glass capillary, no significant quenching effect was observed and the number of oxygen atoms decreased with the increase in oxygen concentration. Finally, to demonstrate an application of this plasma jet, a high-density polyethylene surface was treated with argon, argon/nitrogen, and argon/oxygen plasmas.

Application of tetratozilat <i>meso</i>-tetrakis (4-methylpyridil) porphyrin as effective sensor for metal cations in plasma-solution systems

Synthetic porphyrins have, in the last years, gained increasing interest in analytical chemistry as unique reagents for the detection of metal ions. The porphyrin is a high sensitive chromogenic reagent. Porphyrins and their metal complexes generally exhibit characteristic sharp and intensive absorption bands in visible region. The region from 400 to 500 nm, which is called the Soret band, shows the most intensive absorption, and molar absorptivities about 105 are often found. Soret band (400-500 nm) shows the most intensive absorption of these compounds, molar absorptivities often being about 105. The Soret band is widely used for spectro- photometric detection of metalloporphyrins. From the perspective of analytical chemistry, the porphyrin ligand has turned out to be very versatile, and almost all metals have been combined with porphyrin. From this point of view several porphyrins become useful as the spectrophotometric reagents for the determination of metal ions.

Conversion of natural gas to C_2 hydrocarbons through dielectric-barrier discharge plasma catalysis

The experiments are carried out in the system of continuous flow reactors with dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) for studies on the conversion of natural gas to C2 hydrocarbons through plasma catalysis under the atmosphere pressure and room temperature. The influence of discharge frequency, structure of electrode, discharge voltage, number of electrode, ratio of H2/CH4, flow rate and catalyst on conversion of methane and selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons are investigated. At the same time, the reaction process is investigated. Higher conversion of methane and selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons are achieved and deposited carbons are eliminated by proper choice of parameters. The appropriate operation parameters in dielectric-barrier discharge plasma field are that the supply voltage is 20-40 kV (8.4-40 W), the frequency of power supply is 20 kHz, the structure of (b) electrode is suitable, and the flow of methane is 20-60 ml · min-1. The conversion of methane can reach 45%, the selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons is 76%, and the total selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons and C3 hydrocarbons is nearly 100%. The conversion of methane increases with the increase of voltage and decreases with the flow of methane increase; the selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons decreases with the increase of voltage and increases with the flow of methane increase. The selectivity of C2 hydrocarbons is improved with catalyst for conversion of natural gas to C2 hydrocarbons in plasma field. Methane molecule collision with radicals is mainly responsible for product formation.

A comparison among optical emission spectroscopic methods of determining electron temperature in low pressure argon plasmas

In this article, four kinds of optical emission spectroscopic methods of determining electron temperature are used to investigate the relationship between electron temperature and pressure in the cylindrical plasmas of dc glow discharges at low pressures in laboratory by measuring the relative intensities of ArI lines at various pressures. These methods are developed respectively on the basis of the Fermi-Dirac model, corona model, and two kinds of electron collision cross section models according to the kinetic analysis. Their theoretical bases and the conditions to which they are applicable are reviewed, and their calculation results and fitting errors are compared with each other. The investigation has indicated that the electron temperatures obtained by the four methods become consistent with each other when the pressure increases in the low pressure argon plasmas.

Comparison of dry reforming of methane in low temperature hybrid plasma-catalytic corona with thermal catalytic reactor over Ni/γ-Al_2O_3

In the current study, the hybrid effect of a corona discharge and γ-alumina supported Ni catalysts in CO2 reforming of methane is investigated. The study includes both purely catalytic operation in the temperature range of 923-1023 K, and hybrid catalytic-plasma operation of DC corona discharge reactor at room temperature and ambient pressure. The effect of feed flow rate, discharge power and Ni/γ-Al2O3 catalysts are studied. When CH4/CO2 ratio in the feed is 1/2, the syngas of low Ha/CO ratio at about 0.56 is obtained, which is a potential feedstock for synthesis of liquid hydrocarbons. Although Ni catalyst is only active above 573 K, presence of Ni catalysts in the cold corona plasma reactor （T≤523 K） shows promising increase in the conversions of methane and carbon dioxide. When Ni catalysts are used in the plasma reaction, H2/CO ratios in the products are slightly modified, selectivity to CO increases whereas fewer by-products such as hydrocarbons and oxygenates are formed.

Experimental Study of a Minitype Atmospheric Non-equilibrium Plasma Source

A mini-type of plasma source was studied experimentally. The results showed that the plasma density, which was generated by an atmospheric non-equilibrium plasma source, rises with the increase in driving electric-field and the momentum of gas particles. For a driving electricfield of 56 kV/cm and a gas particles＇ momentum of 10^9 × 10^-22 g·m/s, the ion density can exceed 10^10/cm^3 while the effective volume of the plasma source is only 2.5 cm^2. This study may help develop a method to generate a minitype plasma source with low energy consumption but high ion concentration. This source can be used in chemical industry, environmental engineering and military applications.

Analyses of nonequilibrium transport in atmospheric-pressure direct-current argon discharge under different modes

The key plasma parameters under different discharge modes, such as heavy-particle and electron temperatures, electron number density, and nonequilibrium volume of plasmas, play important roles in various applications of gas discharge plasmas. In this study, a self-consistent two-dimensional nonequilibrium fluid model coupled with an external circuit model is established to reveal the mechanisms related to the discharge modes, including the normal glow, abnormal glow,arc, and glow-to-arc transition modes, with an atmospheric-pressure direct-current(DC) argon discharge as a model plasma system. The modeling results show that, under different discharge modes, the most significant difference between the preceding four discharge modes lies in the current and energy transfer processes on the cathode side. On one hand, the current to the cathode surface is mainly delivered by the ions coming from the plasma column under the glow discharge mode due to the low temperature of the solid cathode, whereas the thermionic and secondary electrons emitted from the hot cathode surface play a very important role under the arc mode with a higher cathode surface temperature and higher ion flux toward the cathode. On the other hand, the energy transfer channel on the cathode side changes from mainly heating the solid cathode under the glow mode to simultaneously heating both the solid cathode and plasma column under the arc mode with an increase in the discharge current. Consequently, the power density in the cathode sheath(P_c) was used as a key parameter for judging different discharge modes, and the range of(0.28–1.2) × 10^(12) W m^(-3) was determined as a critical window of P_c corresponding to the glow-to-arc-mode transition for the atmospheric-pressure DC argon discharge, which was also verified by comparison with the experimental results in this study and the data in the previous literature.

Effects of additive gases on dimethyl ether conversion through dielectric barrier discharge

Effects of additive gases on dimethyl ether （DME） conversion through dielectric barrier discharge （DBD） were investigated. Most of the additive gases tested in this work increased the conversion of DME, but decreased the yield of liquid product. However, the addition of O2 markedly increased both the conversion of DME and the yield of liquid product. The results show that when O2 volume fraction was 39.95%, the conversion of DME was close to 100% and the yield of liquid product reached 34.43%. Different additive gases resulted in different mass fractions variation of components in liquid products.

Analysis of the Gas Puffing Performance for Improving the Repeatability of Ohmic Discharges in the SUNIST Spherical Tokamak

The gas puffing performance plays a key role in repeatable discharges in the Sino- UNited Spherical Tokamak （SUNIST） experiments. In this paper, temporal evolution of the gas pressure in the vacuum vessel and the dependence of the repeatability of plasma discharges on different timing arrangements between the gas puffing pulse and the Ohmic field have been experimentally investigated. The results show that, after a fast rising phase, the gas pressure becomes quasi-stationary. In the regime of the discharges being started up when the gas pressure has already reached the quasi-stationary state for about 37 ms, an improved repeatability of the plasma discharges is achieved.

Simultaneous removal of ethyl acetate, benzene and toluene with gliding arc gas discharge

The simultaneous removal of ethyl acetate, benzene and toluene with relatively low or high initial concentration is studied using a laboratory scale gliding arc gas discharge (GA) reactor. Good decomposition efficiencies are obtained which proves that the GA is effective for the treatment of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with either low or high concentration. A theoretical decomposition mechanism is proposed based on detection of the species in the plasma region and analysis of the decomposition by-products. This preliminary investigation reveals that the GA has potential to be applied to the treatment of exhaust air during color printing and coating works, by either direct removal or combination with activated carbon adsorption/desorption process.

The Effect of Gas Flow Rate on Radio-Frequency Hollow Cathode Discharge Characteristics

It is known that gas flow rate is a key factor in controlling industrial plasma processing. In this paper, a 2D PIC/MCC model is developed for an rf hollow cathode discharge with an axial nitrogen gas flow. The effects of the gas flow rate on the plasma parameters are calculated and the results show that： with an increasing flow rate, the total ion（N＋2, N＋） density decreases, the mean sheath thickness becomes wider, the radial electric field in the sheath and the axial electric field show an increase, and the energies of both kinds of nitrogen ions increase;and, as the axial ion current density that is moving toward the ground electrode increases, the ion current density near the ground electrode increases. The simulation results will provide a useful reference for plasma jet technology involving rf hollow cathode discharges in N2.

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.

Production of ammonia from plasma-catalytic decomposition of urea: Effects of carrier gas composition

Effects of carrier gas composition（N2/air） on NH3 production, energy efficiency regarding NH3 production and byproducts formation from plasma-catalytic decomposition of urea were systematically investigated using an Al2 O3-packed dielectric barrier discharge（DBD） reactor at room temperature. Results show that the presence of O2 in the carrier gas accelerates the conversion of urea but leads to less generation of NH3. The final yield of NH3 in the gas phase decreased from 70.5%, 78.7%, 66.6% and 67.2% to 54.1%, 51.7%, 49.6% and 53.4% for applied voltages of 17, 19, 21 and 23 kV, respectively when air was used as the carrier gas instead of N2.From the viewpoint of energy savings, however, air carrier gas is better than N2 due to reduced energy consumption and increased energy efficiency for decomposition of a fixed amount of urea. Carrier gas composition has little influence on the major decomposition pathways of urea under the synergetic effects of plasma and Al2 O3 catalyst to give NH3 and CO2 as the main products. Compared to a small amount of N2 O formed with N2 as the carrier gas, however,more byproducts including N2O and NO2 in the gas phase and NH4 NO3 in solid deposits were produced with air as the carrier gas, probably due to the unproductive consumption of NH3, the possible intermediate HNCO and even urea by the abundant active oxygen species and nitrogen oxides generated in air-DBD plasma.