Three-dimensional numerical simulation of heating and melting behaviors of cerium oxide powders in radio frequency thermal plasma

The present study aims at the numerical simulations of the melting process of cerium oxide particles in RF thermal plasma.The physical model and the calculating method were described firstly;the interaction between cerium oxide particles and plasma was analyzed;specific attention was given to the effects of particle initial size,injection velocity on the particle melting and trajectory in plasma.The influence of the temperature field and velocity field distribution of the plasma around the particle trajectory on the melting effect is analyzed,and the relationship between the heat absorption efficiency of the particles and the particle size reduction process is further determined.It is also found that there exists an optimal particle initial injection velocity which led to a more concentrated final particle size distribution and a more significant reduction of particle size.The results could provide effective guidance for understanding the plasma spheroidization process of uranium dioxide and cerium dioxide powder particles.

Quasi-direct numerical simulations of the flow characteristics of a thermal plasma reactor with counterflow jet

Three-dimensional quasi-direct numerical simulations have been performed to investigate a thermal plasma reactor with a counterflow jet. The effects of the momentum flux ratio and distance between the counterflow jet and the thermal plasma jet on the flow characteristics are addressed. The numerical results show that the dimensionless location of the stagnation layer is significantly affected by the momentum flux ratio, but it is not dependent on the distance.Specifically, the stagnation layer is closer to the plasma torch outlet with the increase of the momentum flux ratio. Furthermore, the flow regimes of the stagnation layer and the flow characteristics of the thermal plasma jet are closely related to the momentum flux ratio. The characteristic frequencies associated with the different regimes are identified. The deflecting oscillation flow regimes are found when the momentum flux ratio is low, which provokes axial velocity fluctuations inside the thermal plasma jet. By contrast, for cases with a high momentum flux ratio, flapping flow regimes are distinguished. The thermal plasma jets are very stable and the axial velocity fluctuations mainly exist in the stagnation layer.

Production of pig iron from red mud waste fines using thermal plasma technology

Red mud, an insoluble residue produced during alkali leaching of bauxite, is considered as a low-grade iron ore containing 30% to 50% iron. The present paper deals with the use of thermal plasma technology for producing pig iron from red mud waste fines. The smelting reduction of red mud was carried out in a 35 kW DC extended arc thermal plasma reactor. Red mud was properly mixed with fluxes and graphite （fixed carbon, 99%） as a reductant as per stoichiometric requirement. The effect of various process parameters like a reductant, fluxes and smelting time on iron recovery was studied and optimized. An optimum condition for the maximum recovery of iron was obtained. A new thermal plasma process applicable to direct iron making from red mud waste fines that would achieve significant utilization of red mud was proposed.

Vitrification of MSWI Fly Ash by Thermal Plasma Melting and Fate of Heavy Metals

Municipal solid waste incinerator （MSWI） fly ash with high basicity （about 1.68） was vitrified in a thermal plasma melting furnace system. Through the thermal plasma treatment, the vitrified product （slag） with amorphous dark glassy structure was obtained, and the leachability of hazardous metals in slag was significantly reduced. Meanwhile, it was found that the cooling rate affects significantly the immobility of heavy metals in slag. The mass distribution of heavy metals （Zn, Cd, Cr, Pb, As, Hg） was investigated in residual products （slag, secondary residues and flue gas）, in order to analyze the behavior of heavy metals in thermal plasma atmosphere. Heavy metal species with low boiling points accounting for the major fraction of their input-mass were adsorbed in secondary residues by pollution abatement devices, while those with high boiling points tended to be encapsulated in slag.

Synergetic effect between non-thermal plasma and photocatalytic oxidation on the degradation of gas-phase toluene: Role of ozone

In this study, a hybrid process using non‐thermal plasma (NTP) and photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) was adopted for the degradation of gas‐phase toluene using TiO2 as the photocatalyst. To discover the synergetic effect between NTP and PCO, the performances of both sole (O3, UV, NTP, and PCO) and combined (O3 + TiO2, O3 + UV, NTP + UV, O3 + PCO, and NTP + PCO) processes were investigated from different perspectives, such as the toluene removal efficiency, selectivity of COx, mineralization rate, ozone utilization, and the generation of by‐products. The toluene removal efficiency of the combined NTP + PCO process was 80.2%, which was much higher than that of a sole degradation process such as NTP (18.8%) and PCO (13.4%). The selectivity of CO2 and the ozone utilization efficiency also significantly improved. The amount of by‐products in the gas phase and the carbon‐ based intermediates adsorbed on the catalyst surface dramatically reduced. The improvement in the overall performances of the combined NTP + PCO process was mainly ascribed to the efficient utilization of ozone in the photocatalytic oxidation, and the ozone further acting as an electron acceptor and scavenger, generating more hydroxyl radicals and reducing the recombination of electron‐ hole pairs.

Synthesis of Ni-CeO_2 catalyst for the partial oxidation of methane using RF thermal plasma

Ni‐CeO2 catalysts with a nickel content of 50 mol% were prepared using RF thermal plasma, and their catalytic activities for methane partial oxidation were characterized. For the synthesis of Ni‐CeO2 catalysts, a precursor containing Ni（～5‐μm diameter） and CeO2（～200‐nm diameter）powders were heated simultaneously using an RF plasma at a power level of ～52 kVA and a powder feeding rate of ～120 g/h. From the X‐ray diffraction data and transmission electron microscopy images, the precursor formed into high crystalline CeO2 supports with nanosized Ni particles（ 50‐nm diameter） on their surfaces. The catalytic performance was evaluated under atmospheric pressure at 500 °C and a CH4：O2 molar ratio of 2：1 with Ar diluent. Although the Ni content was high（～50 mol%）, the experimental results reveal a methane conversion rate of 70%, selectivities of CO and H2 greater than 90% and slight carbon coking during an on‐stream test at 550 °C for 24 h.However, at 750 °C, the on‐stream test revealed the formation of filament‐like carbons with an increased methane conversion rate over 90%.

Deformation Behavior of Nanostructured Ceramic Coatings Deposited by Thermal Plasma Spray

Al2O3-13 wt pet TiO2 coating deposited by direct current plasma spray consists of nanostructured region and micro-lamellae. Bend test shows that the ceramic coating can sustain some deformation without sudden failure. The deformation is achieved through the movement of nano-particles in the nanostructured region under tensile stress.

Simultaneous removal of NO and SO_2 from dry gas stream using non-thermal plasma

In order to investigate the feasibility of sequential removal NO and SO2 using non-thermal plasma and adsorbent simultaneously, the removal of NO and SO2 from dry gas stream （NO/SO2/N2/O2） with very little O2 using non-thermal plasma was investigated using a coaxial dielectric barrier discharge. Comparative experiments were carried out in the dry gas stream with and without Ar respectively at O2 concentration of 0.1%. The results showed that NO could be removed remarkably and it would be enhanced in the presence of Ar in the dry gas stream. It seems that SO2 could not be removed unless there is Ar in the dry gas stream. The mechanism of removal of NO and SO2 in the dry gas stream was discussed.

Synergistic removal of nitrogen monoxide by non-thermal plasma and catalyst simultaneously

An experimental system of De-NO with plasma-catalyst（Cu zeolite） was established to investigate the differences between De- NO with plasma-catalyst and De-NO only with plasma, to provide the instruction for selecting appropriate catalyst and operating condition, The characteristics of De-NO with plasma and De-NO with plasma-catalyst were investigated comparatively by experiments. The experimental results show that De-NO with plasma-catalyst has high NO removal rate; Cu zeolite is an effective catalyst which can promote NO removal rate in plasma remarkably; De-NO with plasma-catalyst should be operated at low temperature and the temperature has opposite effects on the function of catalvst and plasma; water vapor and O2 can increase the NO removal rate.

Effect of high-voltage discharge non-thermal plasma on g-C_3N_4 in a plasma-photocatalyst system

The synergistic effect of high voltage discharge non‐thermal plasma(NTP)and photocatalysts on contaminant removal has repeatedly confirmed by plenty of researches.Most previous plasma‐photocatalyst synergistic systems focused on the utilization of the ultraviolet light but ignored the visible light generated by high voltage discharge.Graphitic carbon nitride(g‐C3N4),a metal‐free semiconductor that exhibits high chemical stability,can utilize both the ultraviolet and visible light from high voltage discharge.However,the synergistic system of NTP and g‐C3N4 has been researched little.In this paper,the effect of NTP generated by dielectric barrier discharge(DBD)on g‐C3N4 is studied by comparing the photocatalytic activities,the surface physical structure and the surface chemical characteristics of pristine and plasma treated g‐C3N4.Experimental results indicate that the DBD plasma can change the physical structure and the chemical characteristics and to further affect the photocatalytic activity of g‐C3N4.The effect of NTP on g‐C3N4 is associated with the discharge intensity and the discharge time.For a long time scale,the effect of NTP on g‐C3N4 photocatalysts presents a periodic change trend.

Understanding CO_2 decomposition by thermal plasma with supersonic expansion quench

CO2 pyrolysis by thermal plasma was investigated,and a high conversion rate of 33% and energy efficiency of 17% were obtained.The high performance benefited from a novel quenching method,which synergizes the converging nozzle and cooling tube.To understand the synergy effect,a computational fluid dynamics simulation was carried out.A quick quenching rate of 10~7Ks（-1） could be expected when the pyrolysis gas temperature decreased from more than 3000 to 1000 K.According to the simulation results,the quenching mechanism was discussed as follows： first,the compressible fluid was adiabatically expanded in the converging nozzle and accelerated to sonic speed,and parts of the heat energy converted to convective kinetic energy; second,the sonic fluid jet into the cooling tube formed a strong eddy,which greatly enhanced the heat transfer between the inverse-flowing fluid and cooling tube.These two mechanisms ensure a quick quenching to prevent the reverse reaction of CO2 pyrolysis gas when it flows out from the thermal plasma reactor.

Enthalpy Probe Technique for Thermal Plasma Diagnostics

The measuring principle and experimental results of the enthalpy probe technique for thermal plasma diagnostics are presented. Its calibration and errors are discussed. Typical results are presented for the system operation in an Ar/H2(5 % H2) plasma arc jet under a reactor chamber pressure of 101.3 kPa. The plasma temperature and velocity profiles are measured. The center temperature and velocity are 6600 K and 850 m/s for plasma power 9 kW at axial location of 17 mm.

Carbon Dioxide Reforming of Methane to Syngas by Thermal Plasma

Experiments were conducted on syngas preparation from dry reforming of methane by carbon dioxide with a DC arc plasma at atmospheric pressure. In all experiments, nitrogen gas was used as the working gas for thermal plasma to generate a high-temperature jet into a horizontal tube reactor. A mixture of methane and carbon dioxide was fed vertically into the jet. In order to obtain a higher conversion rate of methane and carbon dioxide, chemical energy efficiency and fuel production efficiency, parametric screening studies were conducted, in which the volume ratio of carbon dioxide to methane in fed gases and the total flux of fed gases were taken into account. Results showed that carbon dioxide reforming of methane to syngas by thermal plasma exhibited a larger processing capacity, higher conversion of methane and carbon dioxide and higher chemical energy efficiency and fuel production efficiency. In addition, thermodynamic simulation for the reforming process was conducted. Experimental data agreed well with the thermodynamic results, indicating that high thermal efficiency can be achieved with the thermal plasma reforming process.

Non-thermal Plasma Suppresses Bacterial Colonization on Skin Wound and Promotes Wound Healing in Mice

The present study evaluated the effect of non-thermal plasma on skin wound healing in BalB/c mice.Two 6-mm wounds along the both sides of the spine were created on the back of each mouse（n=80） by using a punch biopsy.The mice were assigned randomly into two groups,with 40 animals in each group：a non-thermal plasma group in which the mice were treated with the non-thermal plasma;a control group in which the mice were left to heal naturally.Wound healing was evaluated on postoperative days（POD） 4,7,10 and 14（n=5 per group in each POD） by percentage of wound closure.The mice was euthanized on POD 1,4,7,10,14,21,28 and 35（n=1 in each POD）.The wounds were removed,routinely fixed,paraffin-embedded,sectioned and HE-stained.A modified scoring system was used to evaluate the wounds.The results showed that acute inflammation peaked on POD 4 in non-thermal plasma group,earlier than in control group in which acute inflammation reached a peak on POD 7,and the acute inflammation scores were much lower in non-thermal group than in control group on POD 7（P0.05）.The amount of granular tissue was greater on POD 4 and 7 in non-thermal group than in control group（P0.05）.The re-epithelialization score and the neovasularization score were increased significantly in non-thermal group when compared with control group on POD 7 and 10（P0.05 for all）.The count of bacterial colonies was 103 CFU/mL on POD 4 and 20 CFU/mL on POD 7,significantly lower than that in control group（109 CFU/mL on POD 4 and 1012 CFU/mL on the POD 7）（P0.05）.It was suggested that the non-thermal plasma facilitates the wound healing by suppressing bacterial colo-nization.

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.

Recent progress on non-thermal plasma technology for high barrier layer fabrication

This review describes the application of non-thermal plasma（NTP） technology for high barrier layer fabrication in packaging area.NTP technology is considered to be the most prospective approaches for the barrier layer fabrication over the past decades due to unpollution,high speed,low-costing.The applications of NTP technology have achieved numerous exciting results in high barrier packaging area.Now it seemly demands a detailed review to summarize the past works and direct the future developments.This review focuses on the different NTP resources applied in the high barrier area,the role of plasma surface modification on packaging film surface properties,and the deposition of different barrier coatings based on NTP technology.In particular,this review emphasizes the cutting-edge technologies of NTP on interlayer deposition with organic,inorganic for multilayer barriers fabrication.The future prospects of NTP technology in high barrier film areas are also described.

Fast inactivation of microbes and degradation of organic compounds dissolved in water by thermal plasma

The multifunctionality and the advantages of thermal plasma for the fast inactivation of viable cells and degradation of organic compounds dissolved in waste water are presented.A complete bacterial inactivation process was observed and studied using a thermal plasma treatment source with very short application times,in particular for Staphylococcus aureus bundle spore survival.The survival curves and analyses of the experimental data of the initial and final densities of S.aureus bacteria show a dramatic inhibitory effect of the plasma discharge on the residual bacteria survival ratio.As the exposure time increased,the inactivation process rate increased for direct exposure more than it did for indirect exposure.The evaluation of direct and indirect exposure was based on the analysis of the ultraviolet spectrum from the absorbance spectra of the organic compound dye called benzene sulfonate（C（16）H（11）N2Na O4S）and of viable cells called S.aureus.Organic compounds were degraded and viable cells were killed in a short time by thermal plasma.Moreover,analyses of total carbon,total organic carbon,and total inorganic carbon showed a fast decrease in organically bound carbon,however,this was not as fast as the absorbance spectra revealed by the exposure time increasing more for direct exposure than indirect exposure.After 100 s of exposure to the organic compound dye the removal had a maximun of 40%for samples with indirect exposure to the plasma and a maximum of 90%for samples with the direct exposure.For both samples,where some organic contaminants still remained in treated water,four electrolytes（KCl,Na Cl,Na2SO4,and CH3COONa）were added to be effective for complete sterilization,reaching a purity of 100%.A proposal is made for an optimized thermal plasma water purification system（TPWPS）to improve fast inactivation of microbes and the degradation of organic compounds dissolved in water（especially for direct exposure rather than indirect exposure）using a hybrid plasma torch with an electrical power of 125 kW（500 V–250 A）producing a high-temperature（10 000 K–19 000 K）plasma jet with a maximum gas consumption of 28 mg s^-1.

A New Grade Carbon Black Produced by Thermal Plasma Process

This paper presents a new route about producing carbon black, by which the natural gas cracking is carried out in the absence of oxygen thanks to an electric energy supply externally given by a plasma jet. The carbon black produced by this process has a narrow size distribution and a small average diameter of 38 nm as well as a highly branched aggregate. The higher DBP value of 1.40 ml/g shows it should be a high structure carbon black. The FTIR spectra shows that there are lots of aromatic c-c bonds and a large amount of nitrogen-containing functional groups on the carbon blacks surface, such as -NH, -CN as well as -CH, -OH, -COOH groups.

Efficiency of Removing Sulfur Dioxide in the Air by Non-Thermal Plasma Along with the Application of the Magnetic Field

The non-thermal plasma created by high voltage pulsed power supply can be used to remove sulfur dioxide in the air, but how to increase the removing efficiency is not clear. It is novel to apply the magnetic field in removing SO2 as discussed in this paper. The mechanisms of removing sulfur dioxide by non-thermal plasma along with the application of the magnetic field are analyzed, and the related factors affecting the removal efficiency, such as the magnitude of pulsed voltage, the polarity of the pulse, the layout of the discharge electrode, especially the magnetic field are experimentally investigated. It can be concluded that the purification efficiency is improved significantly by applying the magnetic field.

Mechanism and Kinetics Analysis of NO/SO_2/N_2/O_2 Dissociation Reactions in Non-Thermal Plasma

The kinetics mechanism of the dissociation reactions in a NO/SO2/N2/O2 system was investigated in consideration of energetic electrons＇ impacts on a non-thermal plasma. A model was derived from the Boltzmann equation and molecule collision theory to predict the dissociation reaction rate coefficients. Upon comparison with available literature, the model was confirmed to be acceptably accurate in general. Several reaction rate coefficients of the NO/SO2/N2/O2 dissociation system were derived according to the Arrhenius formula. The activation energies of each plasma reaction were calculated by quantum chemistry methods. The relation between the dissociation reaction rate coefficient and electron temperature was established to describe the importance of each reaction and to predict relevant processes of gaseous chemical reactions. The sensitivity of the mechanism of NO/SO2/N2/O2 dissociation reaction in a non-thermal plasma was also analysed.