Influence of high-voltage pulse parameters on the propagation of a plasma synthetic jet

In this work, a typical pin-to-pin plasma synthetic jet in static air is excited by a pulsed DC power supply. The influences of the pulse rising time, the amplitude and the repetition frequency of the pulse voltage on the jet flow have been investigated. First, using a high-speed Schlieren imaging technique, the induced shock waves and the fast jet flow generated by the plasma synthetic jet are characterized. With a deposited energy of 44 mJ per pulse, the velocity of the shock wave and the maximum velocity of the jet flow reach 320 m s⁻¹ and 100 m s⁻¹, respectively. Second, when the applied voltage increases from 12.8 kV to 16 kV, the maximum jet velocity increases from 66 m s⁻¹ to 93 m s⁻¹. On the other hand, as the pulse rising time varies from 50 ns to 500 ns, or the pulse repetition frequency increases from 5 Hz to 40 Hz, the jet velocity induced by the plasma synthetic jet is weakly dependent. In addition, a comparative study of the plasma synthetic jets using three commercial pulsed power supplies (XJ-15, NPG- 18, and PG-30) is implemented. It reveals that the maximum jet velocity of 120 m s⁻¹ is obtained in the case of PG-30, with the longest pulse rising time and the lowest breakdown voltage, while the maximum velocity of 33 m s⁻¹ is detected in the case of NPG-18, even though it has the shortest pulse rising time and the highest breakdown voltage.     

Parametric study of high-frequency characteristics of plasma synthetic jet actuator

A major issue of plasma synthetic jet actuator(PSJA)is the severe performance deterioration at high working frequency.In this study,experiments and numerical simulation are combined together to investigate the influence of thermal conductivity,throat length(Lth)and discharge duration(Td)on the high-frequency characteristics of PSJA.Results show that the variation of the actuator thermal conductivity and discharge duration will not alter the saturation frequency of the actuator,whereas decreasing the throat length results in an increase of the saturation frequency.For a short-duration capacitive discharge of 1.7 μs,a clear shock wave is issued from the orifice,followed by a weak jet.As a comparison,when the discharge duration is increased up to 202.6 μs,a strong jet column is formed and no obvious shock wave can be visualized.Based on numerical simulation results,it becomes clear that the long-duration pulse-DC discharge is able to heat the cavity gas to a much higher temperature(3141K)than capacitive discharge,greatly improving the conversion efficiency of the arc discharge energy to the internal energy of the cavity gas.In addition,high-speed Schlieren imaging is deployed to study the performance degradation mechanism of PSJA at high working frequency.Monitor of the exit jet grayscale indicates that as long as the saturation frequency is exceeded,the actuator becomes unstable due to insufficient refresh time.The higher the discharge frequency,the more frequently the phenomenon of'misfires'will occur,which explains well the decaying jet total pressure at above saturation frequency.     

Experimental study on plasma actuation characteristics of nanosecond pulsed dielectric barrier discharge

Combining high-speed schlieren technology and infrared imaging technology, related research has been carried out on the influence of parameters such as actuation voltage, repetition frequency, and electrode size of an actuator on the discharge characteristics, induced flow field characteristics, and thermal characteristics of nanosecond pulsed dielectric barrier discharge. The results show that increasing the value of the actuation voltage can significantly increase the actuation intensity, and the plasma discharge area is significantly extended. Increasing the repetition frequency can increase the number of discharges per unit time. Both will cause more energy input and induce more changes in the flow field. The effect of temperature rise is more significant. The width of the covered electrode will affect the potential distribution during the discharge process, which in turn will affect the extension process of the plasma discharge filament. Under the same actuation intensity, the wider the covered electrode, the larger range the induced flow field and temperature rise is. Preliminary experimental analyses of high-frequency actuation characteristics, temperature field characteristics, flow field characteristics and actuation parameter settings provide support for the parameter selection and partial mechanism analysis of plasma anti-icing.     

Analysis on discharge process of a plasma-jet trigered gas spark switch

The plasma-jet triggered gas switch (PJTGS) could operate at a low working coefficient with a low jitter. We observed and analyzed the discharge process of the PJTGS at the lowest working coefficient of 47% with the trigger voltage of 40 kV and the pulse energy of 2 J to evaluate the effect of the plasma jet. The temporal and spatial evolution and the optical emission spectrum of the plasma jet were captured. And the spraying delay time and outlet velocity under different gas pressures were investigated. In addition, the particle in cell with Monte Carlo collision was employed to obtain the particle distribution of the plasma jet varying with time. The results show that, the plasma jet generated by spark discharge is sprayed into a spark gap within tens of nanoseconds, and its outlet velocity could reach 104ms−1. The plasma jet plays a non-penetrating inducing role in the triggered discharge process of the PJTGS. On the one hand, the plasma jet provides the initial electrons needed by the discharge; on the other hand, a large number of electrons focusing on the head of the plasma jet distort the electric field between the head of the plasma jet and the opposite electrode. Therefore, a fast discharge originated from the plasma jet is induced and quickly bridges two electrodes.     

Control of flow separation over a wing model with plasma synthetic jets

An array of 30 plasma synthetic jet actuators (PSJAs) is deployed using a modified multichannel discharge circuit to suppress the flow separation over a straight-wing model. The lift and drag of the wing model are measured by a force balance, and the velocity fields over the suction surface are captured by a particle imaging velocimetry system. Results show that the flow separation of the straight wing originates from the middle of the model and expands towards the wingtips as the angle of attack increases. The flow separation can be suppressed effectively by the PSJAs array. The best flow control effect is achieved at a dimensionless discharge frequency of F⁺ = 1, with the peak lift coefficient increased by 10.5% and the stall angle postponed by 2°. To further optimize the power consumption of the PSJAs, the influence of the density of PSJAs on the flow control effect is investigated. A threshold of the density exits (with the spanwise spacing of PSJAs being 0.2 times of the chord length in the current research), below which the flow control effect starts to deteriorate remarkably. In addition, for comparison purposes, a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuator is installed at the same location of the PSJAs. At the same power consumption, 4.9% increase of the peak lift coefficient is achieved by DBD, while that achieved by PSJAs reaches 5.6%.     

Dynamics of plasma bullets by nanosecond pulsed micro-hollow cathode discharge within air

In this paper, the air plasma jet produced by micro-hollow cathode discharge(MHCD) is investigated. The discharge is powered by a positive nanosecond pulse high voltage supply. The waveforms of the discharge, the images of the jet, the evolution of the plasma bullet and the reactive species are obtained to analyze the characteristics of the MHCD plasma jet. It is found that the length of the plasma jet is almost proportional to the air flow rate of 2–6 slm. Two plasma bullets appear one after another during a single period of the voltage waveform, and both of the two plasma bullets are formed during the positive pulse voltage off. The propagation velocity of the two plasma bullets is on the order of several hundred m/s, which is approximate to that of the air flow. These results indicate that the gas flow has an important influence on the formation of this MHCD plasma jet.     

Numerical Study of Fluid Dynamics and Heat Transfer Induced by Plasma Discharges

A numerical investigation is conducted to explore the evolution of a plasma discharge and its interaction with the fluid flow based on a self-consistent fluid model which couples the discharge dynamics with the fluid dynamics.The effects of the applied voltage on the distribution of velocity and temperature in initially static air are parainetrically studied.Furthermore,the spatial structure of plasma discharge and the resulting force contours in streamwise and normal directions are discussed in detail.The result shows that the plasma actuator produces a net force that should always be directed away from the exposed electrode,which results in an ionic wind pushing particles into a jet downstream of the actuator.When the energy added by the plasma is taken into account,the ambient air temperature is increased slightly around the electrode,but the velocity is almost not affected.Therefore it is unlikely that the induced flow is buoyancy driven.For the operating voltages considered in this paper,the maximum induced velocity is found to follow a power law,i.e.,it is proportional to the applied voltage to the 3.5 power.This promises an efficient application in the flow control with plasma actuators.     

Analysis of an Ar plasma jet in a dielectric barrier discharge conjugated with a microsecond pulse

In this work, an Ar plasma jet generated by an AC-microsecond-pulse-driven dielectric barrier discharge reactor, which had two ring-shaped electrodes isolated from the ambient atmosphere by transformer oil, was investigated. By special design of the oil insulation, a chemically active Ar plasma jet along with a safe and stable plasma process as well as low emission of CO and NO_x were successfully achieved. The results indicated that applied voltage and frequency were basic factors influencing the jet temperature, discharge power, and jet length, which increased significantly with the two operating parameters. Meanwhile, gas velocity affected the jet temperature in a reverse direction. In comparison with a He plasma jet, the Ar plasma jet had relatively low jet temperature under the same level of the input parameters, being preferable for bio-applications. The Ar plasma jet has been tested to interact with human skin within 5 min without the perception of burnt skin and electrical shock.     

Numerical study of the influence of dielectric tube on propagation of atmospheric pressure plasma jet based on coplanar dielectric barrier discharge

A 2D fluid model was employed to simulate the influence of dielectric on the propagation of atmospheric pressure helium plasma jet based on coplanar dielectric barrier discharge (DBD). The spatio-temporal distributions of electron density, ionization rate, electrical field, spatial charge and the spatial structure were obtained for different dielectric tubes that limit the helium flow. The results show that the change of the relative permittivity of the dielectric tube where the plasma jet travels inside has no influence on the formation of DBD itself, but has great impact on the jet propagation. The velocity of the plasma jet changes drastically when the jet passes from a tube of higher permittivity to one of lower permittivity, resulting in an increase in jet length,ionization rate and electric field, as well as a change in the distribution of space charges and discharge states. The radius of the dielectric tube has a great influence on the ring-shaped or solid bullet structure. These results can well explain the behavior of the plasma jet from the dielectric tube into the ambient air and the hollow bullet in experiments.     

Compact High-Velocity Atmospheric Pressure Dielectric Barrier Plasma Jet in Ambient Air

In this paper,a non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma jet at high streaming velocity operating with ambient air is highlighted.In the present technological approach,the employment of air poses a significant challenge.The high oxygen concentration in air results in a reduced concentration of reactive species in combination with a short species lifetime.The plasma jet assembly presented here contains a special dielectric barrier with a high secondary emission coefficient.In this way,the electron density and in turn the density of reactive species is increased.In addition,the plasma jet assembly is equipped with a short electrode.This leads to a higher voltage across the discharge gap and in turn to an increased density of reactive plasma species.The plasma jet is formed within and emitted by a small conical nozzle.A high-speed gas flow with gas velocity of 340 m/s was achieved at the end of the nozzle.In the jet the concentration of toxic and unwanted neutral plasma species like O_3 or NO_x is significantly reduced because of the shorter residence time within the plasma.The range of short-lived active plasma species is in turn considerably enhanced.The jet efficiency and action range measured through the oxidation of a test surface were determined by measuring the increase of surface tension of a polypropylene substrate via contact angle measurements after plasma treatment.Numerical modeling of the plasma plume indicates that oxygen atoms are in fact the main active species in the plasma plume.     

Experimental Study of the Unsteady Actuation Effect on Induced Flow Characteristics in DBD Plasma Actuators

The main aim of this paper is to investigate unsteady actuation effects on the operation of dielectric barrier discharge(DBD) plasma actuators and to study induced flow characteristics of steady and unsteady actuators in quiescent air.The parameters affecting the operation of unsteady plasma actuators were experimentally measured and compared with the ones for steady actuators.The effects of excitation frequency and duty cycle on the induced flow pattern properties were studied by means of hot-wire anemometers,and the smoke visualization method was also used.It was observed that the current and the mean induced velocity linearly increase with increasing duty cycle while they are not sensitive to excitation frequency.Furthermore,with increasing excitation frequency,the magnitude of vortices shedding from the actuator decreases while their frequency increases.Nevertheless,when the excitation frequency grows beyond a certain level,the induced flow downstream of the actuator behaves as a steady flow.However,the results for steady actuators show that by increasing the applied voltage and carrier frequency,the velocity of the induced flow first increases and then decreases with actuator saturation and the onset of the emission of streaky glow discharge.     

Design,Construction and Characterization of AC Atmospheric Pressure Air Non-thermal Plasma Jet

This paper presents the design and construction of non-thermal plasma jet device which was built in plasma phys. Dept., NRC, AEA, Egypt with a plasma application group. This design will be useful to initiate research in different fields such as low temperature plasma, polymer and biomedical applications. The experimental operation of this device is conducted with power supply of (10 kV, 30 mA, and 20 kHz). The discharge process takes place by using Air as input gas with different flow rates. The experimental results showed that the maximum plasma jet length of 7 mm is detected at air flow rate of 12 L/min. The electrical characteristics of discharge at different flow rates of Air such as discharge voltage, current, mean power, power efficiency, and energy have been studied by using potential dividers and Lissajous figure techniques. The results of plasma jet temperature along the jet length showed that the jet plasma has approximately a room temperature at the end of jet column.     

Electrical and aerodynamic characteristics of sliding discharge based on a microsecond pulsed plasma supply

Plasma flow control technology has broad prospects for application. Compared with conventional dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators (DBD-PA), the sliding discharge plasma actuator (SD-PA) has the advantages of a large discharge area and a deflectable induced jet. To achieve the basic performance requirements of light weight, low cost, and high reliability required for UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) plasma flight experiments, this work designed a microsecond pulse plasma supply that can be used for sliding discharge plasma actuators. In this study, the topology of the primary circuit of the microsecond pulse supply is determined, the waveform of the output terminal of the microsecond pulse plasma supply is detected using the Simulink simulation platform, and the design of the actuation voltage, the pulse frequency modulation function and the construction of the hardware circuit are achieved. Using electrical diagnosis and flow field analysis, the actuation characteristics and flow characteristics of sliding discharge plasma under microsecond pulse actuation are studied, the optimal electrical actuation parameters and flow field characteristics are described.     

阳极结构对直流非转移型等离子体射流特性的影响

本文介绍了自行研制的直流非转移弧等离子体炬的结构和工作原理,研究了不同阳极结构等离子体射流的特性与气体流量、弧功率的关系,以及侧向垂直送气对射流形貌的影响.结果表明,阳极结构对等离子体射流特性的影响较大,弧压随着阳极压缩角的增大而下降,较小压缩角的射流稳定性更好;通道直径较小的等离子体射流刚性更强;不同阳极结构的等离子体炬可以有不同的应用领域.     

Three modes of a direct-current plasma jet operated underwater to degrade methylene blue

A direct-current air plasma jet operated underwater presents three stable modes including an intermittently-pulsed discharge, a periodically-pulsed discharge and a continuous discharge with increasing the power voltage. The three discharge modes have different appearances for the plasma plumes. Moreover, gap voltage-current characteristics indicate that the continuous discharge is in a normal glow regime. Spectral lines from reactive species(OH, N_2, N_2~+, H_α,and O) have been revealed in the emission spectrum of the plasma jet operated underwater.Spectral intensities emitted from OH radical and oxygen atom increase with increasing the power voltage or the gas flow rate, indicating that reactive species are abundant. These reactive species cause the degradation of the methylene blue dye in solution. Effects of the experimental parameters such as the power voltage, the gas flow rate and the treatment time are investigated on the degradation efficiency. Results indicate that the degradation efficiency increases with increasing the power voltage, the gas flow rate or the treatment time. Compared with degradation in the intermittently-pulsed mode or the periodically-pulsed one, it is more efficient in the continuous mode, reaching 98% after 21 min treatment.     

Analysis on discharge process of a plasma-jet triggered gas spark switch

The plasma-jet triggered gas switch (PJTGS) could operate at a low working coefficient with a low jitter.We observed and analyzed the discharge process of the PJTGS at the lowest working coefficient of 47％ with the trigger voltage of 40 kV and the pulse energy of 2 J to evaluate the effect of the plasma jet.The temporal and spatial evolution and the optical emission spectrum of the plasma jet were captured.And the spraying delay time and outlet velocity under different gas pressures were investigated.In addition,the particle in cell with Monte Carlo collision was employed to obtain the particle distribution of the plasma jet varying with time.The results show that,the plasma jet generated by spark discharge is sprayed into a spark gap within tens of nanoseconds,and its outlet velocity could reach 104 ms-1.The plasma jet plays a non-penetrating inducing role in the triggered discharge process of the PJTGS.On the one hand,the plasma jet provides the initial electrons needed by the discharge;on the other hand,a large number of electrons focusing on the head of the plasma jet distort the electric field between the head of the plasma jet and the opposite electrode.Therefore,a fast discharge originated from the plasma jet is induced and quickly bridges two electrodes.     

Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Jet in Ar and O2/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.     

Investigation of optimum discharge characteristics and chemical activity of AC driven air plasma jet and its anticancer effect

In this study,we investigated the effects of the quartz tube diameter,air flow rate,and applied voltage on the characteristics of an air plasma jet to obtain the optimized discharge characteristics.The physicochemical properties and concentration of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species(RONS)in plasma-activated medium(PAM)were characterized to explore their chemical activity.Furthermore,we investigated the inactivation effect of air plasma jet on tumour cells and their corresponding inactivation mechanism.The results show that the tube diameter plays an important role in sustaining the voltage of the air plasma jet,and the gas flow rate affects the jet length and discharge intensity.Additionally,the air plasma jet discharge displays two modes,namely,ozone and nitrogen oxide modes at high and low gas flow rates,respectively.Increasing the voltage increases the concentration of reactive species and the length of discharge.By evaluating the viability of A549 cells under different parameters,the optimal treatment conditions were determined to be a quartz tube diameter of 4 mm,gas flow rate of 0.5 SLM,and voltage of 18 kV.Furthermore,an air plasma jet under the optimized conditions effectively enhanced the chemical activity in PAM and produced more aqueous RONS.The air plasma jet induced significant cytotoxicity in A549 cancer cells after plasma treatment.H2O2 and NO2 are regarded as key factors in promoting cell inactivation.The present study demonstrates the potential use of tumour cell therapy by atmospheric air PAM,which aids a better understanding of plasma liquid chemistry.     

The influence of grounded electrode positions on the evolution and characteristics of an atmospheric pressure argon plasma jet

An atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) in Ar with various grounded electrode arrangements is employed to investigate the effects of electrode arrangement on the characteristics of the APPJ.Electrical and optical methods are used to characterize the plasma properties.The discharge modes of the APPJ with respect to applied voltage are studied for grounded electrodepositions of 10 mm,40 mm and 80 mm,respectively,and the main discharge and plasma parameters are investigated.It is shown that an increase in the distance between the grounded electrode and high-voltage electrode results in a change in the discharge modes and discharge parameters.The discharges transit from having two discharge modes,dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) and jet,to having three,corona,DBD and jet,with increase in the distance from the grounded to the high-voltage electrodes.The maximum length of the APPJ reaches 3.8 cm at an applied voltage of 8 kV.The discharge power and transferred charges and spectral line intensities for species in the APPJ are influenced by the positions of the grounded electrode,while there is no obvious difference in the values of the electron excited temperature (EET) for the three grounded electrode positions.     

Plasma jet array treatment to improve the hydrophobicity of contaminated HTV silicone rubber

An atmospheric-pressure plasma jet array specially designed for HTV silicone rubber treatment is reported in this paper. Stable plasma containing highly energetic active particles was uniformly generated in the plasma jet array. The discharge pattern was affected by the applied voltage. The divergence phenomenon was observed at low gas flow rate and abated when the flow rate increased.Temperature of the plasma plume is close to room temperature which makes it feasible for temperature-sensitive material treatment. Hydrophobicity of contaminated HTV silicone rubber was significantly improved after quick exposure of the plasma jet array, and the effective treatment area reached 120 mm?×?50 mm(length?×?width). Reactive particles in the plasma accelerate accumulation of the hydrophobic molecules, namely low molecular weight silicone chains, on the contaminated surface, which result in a hydrophobicity improvement of the HTV silicone rubber.