Ignition Processes in ac Plasma Displays

The ignition behaviour of discharge cells in ac plasma displays, their ignition statistics and interaction processes occurring between several ignited cells are described and interpreted with a view to basic problems of gas discharge and solid state physics. Ac plasma displays of three different sizes were investigated: PAF 58, 90 and PAF 128.     

An influence of the electrode emission properties and the gas temperature on the discharge ignition voltage in the mixture of argon with mercury vapor

Kinetics of electrons, ions and metastable excited atoms in the interelectrode gap of a low-current discharge in the argon-mercury mixture is simulated, and the discharge ignition voltage as a function of the temperature and the cathode ion-electron secondary emission rate is calculated. The mixture temperature dependence of the minimum value of the ion-electron secondary emission rate ensuring a given discharge ignition voltage is found.     

On minimum energy of ignition of methane-air mixtures

The spark ignition of methane-air mixtures of various compositions with the help of a high-voltage source based on a piezoceramic step-up transformer with a high output resistance was studied. The experiments were performed at volumetric flow rates up to 20 cm/s and discharge gap widths up to 6 mm. The results were compared to the published data. Gaseous mixtures were demonstrated to be initiated at a decreased ignition energy. The ignition energy was found to be substantially lower when the initiation occurred in the corona discharge regime.     

Multipoint Ignition of a Gas Mixture by a Microwave Subcritical Discharge with an Extended Streamer Structure

The results of experimental studies on using an electrical discharge with an extended streamer structure in a quasioptical microwave beam in the multipoint ignition of a propane–air mixture have been reported. The pulsed microwave discharge was initiated at the interior surface of a quartz tube that was filled with the mentioned flammable mixture and introduced into a microwave beam with a subbreakdown initial field. Gas breakdown was initiated by an electromagnetic vibrator. The dependence of the type of discharge on the microwave field strength was examined, the lower concentration threshold of ignition of the propane–air mixture by the studied discharge was determined, and the dynamics of combustion of the flammable mixture with local and multipoint ignition were compared.     

Ignition of hydrocarbon films under the conditions of surface microwave discharge

In the present work, rapid plasma-stimulated ignition of liquid hydrocarbons was carried out in still air under conditions of surface microwave discharge. It was shown that, depending on the microwave input power, the breakdown time changed in a range from 5 to 30μs, ignition occurred on an antenna in the area of the surface microwave discharge at a temperature not exceeding 1000 K, and the speed of the front boundary propagation of the intense ignition region near the antenna was 300 m s^?1.     

Brush and propagating brush discharges on insulating sheets in contact with a grounded conductor

This is a report of an experimental investigation of the brush and propagating brush discharges on charged insulating surfaces in contact with a grounded backing plate to gain a guide for the risk assessment of ignition by the discharges on insulating coats and liners often used in chemical processes. Based on the result, we provide unified expressions of the charge transferred by brush discharge and of a criterion for the onset of propagating brush discharge with the estimation of their discharge energies for the quantitative analysis of ignition hazards associated with the coats and liners.     

DNS of spark ignition using Analytically Reduced Chemistry including plasma kinetics

In order to guarantee good re-ignition capacities in case of engine failure during flight, it is of prime interest for engine manufacturers to understand the physics of ignition from the spark discharge to the full burner lightning. During the ignition process, a spark plug delivers a very short and powerful electrical discharge to the mixture. A plasma is first created before a flame kernel propagates. The present work focuses on this still misunderstood first instants of ignition, i.e., from the sparking to the flame kernel formation. 3D Direct Numerical Simulations of propane-air ignition sequences induced by an electric discharge are performed on a simple anode-cathode set-up. An Analytically Reduced Chemistry (ARC) including 34 transported species and 586 irreversible reactions is used to describe the coupled combustion and plasma kinetics. The effect of plasma chemistry on the temperature field is found to be non-negligible up to a few microseconds after the spark due to endothermic dissociation and ionization reactions. However, its impact on the subsequent flame kernel development appears to be weak in the studied configuration. This tends to indicate that plasma chemistry does not play a key role in ignition and may be omitted in numerical simulations.     

Ignition of a cloud of dry powder using super brush discharges

Ignition of a cloud of dry powder is a major concern in the field of industrial process safety. The different types of discharges are already defined (spark discharges, brush discharges, propagating discharges, cone discharges, corona discharges) such as their ignition properties in a gas or a dust atmosphere. For example, it is known that a classic brush discharge cannot ignite a cloud of dry flammable dust [6,13]. Glor and Schwenzfeuer performed direct ignition tests using brush discharges and defined that even if the energy released by this kind of discharge equaled the one of a spark, the power released by the brush discharge is too low to trigger an ignition.However, some doubts remained for super brush discharges. A brush discharge as a super brush discharge occurs between a charged insulating object and a conductive electrode. The main difference lies in the surface charge density reached on the insulator that is much higher for a super brush discharge than for a brush discharge. A high charge density can be reached for example using pipes of polyethylene individually charged by tribo-charging piled one above another. Such a configuration was evocated by Lüttgens [12] and tested by Larsen [11] who performed direct ignition tests in oxygen enriched atmospheres.This study is relevant with the actual safety problems since pharmaceutical and chemical powders are well known to generate electrostatic charges during their transport or handling and since the same configuration of independent polyethylene fibers can be found in flexible bulk containers that are one of the most common solutions to package this kind of powder.This paper presents the experimental set-up and the results of direct ignition tests performed with a polyethylene wax whose MIE is lower than 1  mJ at ambient conditions. The electric field reached at 1 m and the charge transfer were also registered and are described. Finally, numerical simulations are carried out to define the original surface charge density in order to help to understand the phenomenology of this discharge and its frequency of occurrence in industry.     

Initiation of Gas Discharges in Plasma Displays Assisted by Electron Emission of Thin Insulators

At present many efforts are done for the development of colour plasma displays (PD). One main problem is to secure a reliable ignition, provided by a suitable concentration of starting particles in the discharge cells (priming). In this paper a new priming method is proposed using the exoelectron emission (EEE) of thin insulators. The influence of the EEE on the ignition behaviour of ac PD cells is investigated and compared with direct measurements of the afteremission of MgO, Al₂O₃ and MgAl₂O₄. Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), residual gas mass spectra and Ar⁺ etching are additionally used methods.     

用激光点火辅助火花诱导击穿光谱技术实现铝合金的高灵敏元素分析

报道了采用激光点火辅助火花诱导击穿光谱技术分析铝合金中痕量元素时的分析行为。用低能量激光脉冲聚焦于样品表面并在放电电极之间产生等离子体来触发高压火花放电以改善火花诱导击穿光谱技术的分析行为。在当前空间几何配置下,研究得到了最佳的放电电压和储能电容等参数并在最佳实验条件下分析了样品中的铜元素,其检出限达到0.7 ppm。激光点火的辅助手段改善了火花诱导击穿光谱技术在元素分析时信号的稳定性、提高了分析精度。同时它还能够有效地降低放电电压,改善其空间分辨本领。研究表明激光点火辅助火花诱导击穿光谱技术具有灵敏度高、稳定性好以及具有较好的空间分辨本领的特点,非常适合于各种合金中的痕量元素分析。     

瞬时纳秒脉冲等离子体点火模式

应用高压纳秒脉冲放电技术分别产生了瞬时冷等离子体和瞬时热等离子体。在圆柱型燃烧室内进行了乙烯/空气预混气的瞬时冷等离子体和瞬时热等离子体点火实验。实验结果表明,瞬时冷等离子体放电所需的电能小于瞬时热等离子体放电。与瞬时热等离子体点火技术相比,瞬时冷等离子体点火缩短了碳氢燃料的点火延迟时间。     

Desensitizing nano powders to electrostatic discharge ignition

Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is a main cause for ignition in powder media ranging from grain silos to fireworks. Nanoscale particles are orders of magnitude more ESD ignition sensitive than their micron scale counterparts. This study shows that at least 13 vol. % carbon nanotubes (CNT) added to nano-aluminum and nano-copper oxide particles (nAl + CuO) eliminates ESD ignition sensitivity. The CNT act as a conduit for electric energy and directs electric charge through the powder to desensitize the reactive mixture to ignition. For nanoparticles, the required CNT concentration for desensitizing ESD ignition acts as a diluent to quench energy propagation.     

Direct ignition tests with brush discharges

To study the ignition behaviour of brush discharges, a new experimental approach was chosen. In a clear and easy manner it was possible to demonstrate the incendivity of brush discharges for flammable gases (what was already well known in the past) and the non-incendivity for powders, even in case of very low minimum ignition energies (MIE). Based on the investigations performed, it could be demonstrated, that the influence of the dust on the electric field and thus on the course of the brush discharge as well as the different wave form (power density) of the brush discharge compared with a spark discharge are responsible for the non-ignition of powders by brush discharges.     

Direct ignition and S-curve transition by in situ nano-second pulsed discharge in methane/oxygen/helium counterflow flame

A well-defined plasma assisted combustion system with novel in situ discharge in a counterflow diffusion flame was developed to study the direct coupling kinetic effect of non-equilibrium plasma on flame ignition and extinction. A uniform discharge was generated between the burner nozzles by placing porous metal electrodes at the nozzle exits. The ignition and extinction characteristics of CH₄/O₂/He diffusion flames were investigated by measuring excited OH¹ and OH PLIF, at constant strain rates and O₂ mole fraction on the oxidizer side while changing the fuel mole fraction. It was found that ignition and extinction occurred with an abrupt change of OH¹ emission intensity at lower O₂ mole fraction, indicating the existence of the conventional ignition-extinction S-curve. However, at a higher O₂ mole fraction, it was found that the in situ discharge could significantly modify the characteristics of ignition and extinction and create a new monotonic and fully stretched ignition S-curve. The transition from the conventional S-curves to a new stretched ignition curve indicated clearly that the active species generated by the plasma could change the chemical kinetic pathways of fuel oxidation at low temperature, thus resulting in the transition of flame stabilization mechanism from extinction-controlled to ignition-controlled regimes. The temperature and OH radical distributions were measured experimentally by the Rayleigh scattering technique and PLIF technique, respectively, and were compared with modeling. The results showed that the local maximum temperature in the reaction zone, where the ignition occurred, could be as low as 900 K. The chemical kinetic model for the plasma–flame interaction has been developed based on the assumption of constant electric field strength in the bulk plasma region. The reaction pathways analysis further revealed that atomic oxygen generated by the discharge was critical to controlling the radical production and promoting the chain branching effect in the reaction zone for low temperature ignition enhancement.     

Parameters of transverse-longitudinal discharge in supersonic airflow

Plasma of transverse-longitudinal direct-current discharge in a supersonic aerodynamic channel with a reverse step is studied experimentally. For deposited powers of 2–3 kW, the gas temperature in the discharge achieves 2000 ± 500 K. The results obtained testify to the applicability of discharge plasma for the ignition of supersonic air-fuel flows.     

介质阻挡放电等离子体的化学动力学效应研究

为了进一步揭示等离子体强化甲烷点火过程的化学动力学机理,设计和搭建了介质阻挡放电等离子体激励空气的实验系统,实验测量了在空气中介质阻挡放电等离子体激励器产生的发射光谱,利用光谱技术分析了等离子体激励空气产生的若干活性粒子,给出了零维均质点火模型以及敏感性分析和化学路径分析的计算方法,模拟了不同初始温度下NO和O₃对甲烷点火延迟时间的影响,并分析了活性粒子NO和O₃强化甲烷点火的化学动力学过程。研究表明：介质阻挡放电等离子体激励空气主要产生N₂和O₂的若干激发态粒子,并最终转化成存活时间较长的活性粒子NO_x和O₃,等离子体对甲烷点火过程的影响可以简化成活性粒子NO_x和O₃对甲烷点火过程的影响;CH₃的氧化速率决定了甲烷点火过程的快慢,在自点火过程中CH₃的氧化路径是反应式R155和R156,初始温度较低时R155和R156的反应速率慢,所以甲烷的点火延迟时间长;NO缩短点火延迟时间是由于CH₃的氧化路径由自点火过程中的反应式R155和R156改为反应式R327 CH₃O₂+NO=CH₃O+NO₂和R328 CH₃+NO₂=CH₃O+NO;O₃强化甲烷点火过程同样是由于O₃改变CH₃的氧化路径,从化学动力学上缩短点火延迟时间。     

Synthesizing aluminum particles towards controlling electrostatic discharge ignition sensitivity

Aluminum particles were synthesized with shell thicknesses ranging from 2.7 to 8.3 nm and a constant diameter of 95 nm. These fuel particles were combined with molybdenum trioxide particles and the electrostatic discharge (ESD) sensitivity of the mixture was measured. Results show ignition delay increased as the alumina shell thickness increased. These results correlated with electrical resistivity measurements of the mixture which increased with alumina concentration. A model was developed using COMSOL for ignition of a single Al particle. The ignition delay in the model was consistent with the experimental results suggesting that the primary ESD ignition mechanism is joule heating.     

Controlling the electrostatic discharge ignition sensitivity of composite energetic materials using carbon nanotube additives

Powder energetic materials are highly sensitive to electrostatic discharge (ESD) ignition. This study shows that small concentrations of carbon nanotubes (CNT) added to the highly reactive mixture of aluminum and copper oxide (Al + CuO) significantly reduces ESD ignition sensitivity. CNT act as a conduit for electric energy, bypassing energy buildup and desensitizing the mixture to ESD ignition. The lowest CNT concentration needed to desensitize ignition is 3.8 vol.% corresponding to percolation corresponding to an electrical conductivity of 0.04 S/cm. Conversely, added CNT increased Al + CuO thermal ignition sensitivity to a hot wire igniter.     

Über den Gleichspannungsdurchschlag im Ultrahochvakuum

DC-breakdowns with arc-conditioned electrodes in vapour-free vacuum have been investigated with high temporal resolution. The breakdowns started always with a cathode flare, the ignition voltage of which was strongly correlated with prebreakdown field emission. The temporal development of gap plasma, discharge current and gap voltage during the breakdowns could be satisfactorily explained by the models of explosive electron emission and space-charge limited diode conduction. No change of mechanism was observed with gap distances up to 6 mm and voltages up to 120 kV. Generally the resistance of the discharge channel became low enough for a transition to the arc stage. However, in a few cases a self-limitation of the discharge occurred due to starvation of the material transfer from the cathode. At higher gap distances the surrounding walls had a distinct influence on the ignition of the discharges.     

Simulation of ignition of a supersonic flow of a propane-air mixture by electric discharge

The numerical simulation of the ignition process of a supersonic flow of a preliminary mixed propane-air mixture by electric discharge, with respect to power, geometry, and the duration of energy input, was carried out via a two-dimensional thermo-chemical model. The ignition thresholds evaluated in the framework of this model were in agreement with the experimental values of power density and induction duration.