Three-Dimensional Modeling of the Turbulent Plasma Jet Impinging upon a Flat Plate and with Transverse Particle and Carrier-Gas Injection

Modeling results are presented concerning the turbulent thermal plasma jet impinging normally on a substrate and with transverse injection of feedstock particles and their carrier gas from a single injection tube. The k- two-equation model is employed to model the turbulence, and particle dispersion is studied considering the interaction between the moving particles and turbulent eddies and considering the effect on particle trajectories of the random variation of the turbulent fluctuating velocities in their magnitude and direction. A well-validated three-dimensional (3-D) computer code is used in the modeling. The 3-D effects due to the carrier gas injection on the jet flow field and thus on the particle trajectories and heating histories are shown to be appreciable. The radial location of the injection tube with respect to the plasma jet is shown to be a critical parameter for the study of 3-D effects, besides the carrier-gas/plasma stream mass flux ratio. Particle dispersion considerably widens the distribution of the particle trajectories and heating histories. In addition, although pertinent swirl number is often rather small, swirling may also affect the modeling results.     

Parametric study of the decomposition of NH3 for an induction plasma reactor design

The present paper reports a study of the gas mixing and chemical transformation in an induction plasma reactor under atmospheric pressure, and its dependence on the plasma operating conditions. For this purpose, the thermal dissociation of ammonia into nitrogen and hydrogen was chosen because of the relative simplicity of the reactions involved and its use in a number of studies on plasma synthesis of ultrafine nitride ceramic powders using ammonia as nitriding agent. A hot-wall reactor configuration is investigated in which ammonia is injected radially through multiple orifices into the gases at the exit nozzle of an induction plasma torch. Concentration mapping in the mixing zone was carried out, using a VG-Micromass-PC 300 D quadrupole mass spectrometer, for different plasma power levels, in the range 13–24 kW. A 3-point injection mode is used with the injection ports oriented upstream at 45° to the torch axis. This allows uniform mixing of the injected gas in the plasma jet. A systematic study of the effects of plate power and ammonia and plasma gas flow rates on the mixing and dissociation of NH₃ in the reactor is reported. The results are analyzed and discussed from the viewpoint of their use for optimizing the design of induction plasma reactors, to he applied to the vapor-phase synthesis of ultrafine silicon nitride powders.     

A Computational Examination of the Sources of Statistical Variance in Particle Parameters During Thermal Plasma Spraying

Computational modeling is used to systematically examine many of the sources of statistical variance in particle parameters during thermal plasma spraying. Using the computer program LAVA, a steady-state plasma jet typical of a commercial torch at normal operating conditions, is first developed. Then, assuming a single particle composition(ZrO₂) and injection location, real world complexity (e.g., turbulent dispersion, particle size and density, injection velocity, and direction) is introduced ``one phenomenon at a time to distinguish and characterize its effect and enable comparisons of separate effects. Calculations are also performed wherein all phenomena are considered simultaneously to enable further comparisons. Both nonswirling and swirling plasma flow fields are considered. Investigating each phenomenon separately provides valuable insight into particle behavior. For the typical plasma jet and injection conditions considered, particle dispersion in the injection direction is mostsignificantly affected by (in order of decreasing importance): particle size distribution, injection velocity distribution, turbulence, and injection direction distribution or particle density distribution. Only the distribution of injection directions and turbulence affect dispersion normal to the injection direction and are of similar magnitude in this study. With regards to particle velocity and temperature, particle size is clearly the dominant effect.     

Particle densities and non-equilibrium in a low-pressure argon plasma jet

Plasma diagnostic techniques have been employed to determine particle densities and temperatures in a low-pressure argon plasma jet generated by a cascade arc. These measurements allow characterization of the extent to which the plasma jet deviates from thermodynamic equilibrium and provide a basis for predicting how reactive gases will interact with the excited and ionized species in the plasma jet. It was found that the distribution of atomic states in the plasma jet is not adequately described by either local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) or partial local thermodynamic equilibrium (pLTE), and the jet was optically thick for 3p4s transitions across the jet radius. Excited argon neutrals outnumber ions by a large ratio, and dominate subsequent dissociation/excitation phenomena. The rate of methane destruction in the plasma jet shows that estimates for particle densities, temperature, and jet velocity are self-consistent.     

Particle dynamics and particle heat and mass transfer in thermal plasmas. Part I. The motion of a single particle without thermal effects

A particle injected into a thermal plasma will experience a number of effects which are not present in an ordinary gas. In this paper effects exerted on the motion of a particle will be reviewed and analyzed in the context of thermal plasma processing of materials. The primary purpose of this paper is an assessment of the relative importance of various effects on particle motion.Computer experiments are described, simulating motion of a spherical particle in a laminar, confined plasma jet or in a turbulent, free plasma jet. Particle sizes range from 5 to 50 µm, and as sample materials alumina and tungsten are considered.The results indicate that (i) the correction term required for the viscous drag coefficient due to strongly varying properties is the most important factor; (ii) non-continuum effects are important for particle sizes <10 µm at atmospheric pressure and these effects will be enhanced for smaller particles and/or reduced pressures; (iii) the Basset history term is negligible, unless relatively large and light particles are considered over long processing distances; (iv) thermophoresis is not crucial for the injection of particles into thermal plasmas; (v) turbulent dispersion becomes important for particle <10 µm in diameter.     

Two-temperature modeling of an arc plasma reactor

In this paper a two-temperature plasma model is established and applied to the injection of cold gases into an atmospheric-pressure, high-intensity argon arc. The required nonequilibrium plasma composition and the non-equilibrium transport properties are also calculated. The results show that the arc becomes constricted at the location of gas injection due to thermal and fluid dynamic effects of the injected cold flow. Enhanced Joule heating in the constricted arc path raises the electron as well as the heavy-particle temperatures. This temperature increase resists, via secondary effects, the penetration of the cold gas into the hot arc core which behaves more or less as a solid body as far as the injected flow is concerned. The temperature discrepancy between electrons and heavy particles is most severe at the location of cold flow injection, a finding which may have important consequences on chemical reactions in an arc plasma reactor.     

Computational fluid dynamics modeling of multicomponent thermal plasmas

A comprehensive computational model has been developed Jbr flowing thermal plasmas in the absence of electromagnetic fields, with particular emphasis on plasma jets. The plasma is represented as a rnulticomponent chemicalh, reacting ideal gas with temperature-dependent thermodynamic and transport properties. The plasma flow is governed by the transient compressible Navier-Stokes equations in two or three space dimensions. Turbulence is represented by subgrid-scale and k- models. Species diffusion is calculated by an effective binary diffusion approximation, generalized to allow /or ambipolar diffusion of charged species. Ionization, dissociation, recombination, and other chemical reactions are computed by general kinetic and equilibrium chemistry algorithms. Radiation heat loss is currently modeled as a temperature-dependent energy sink. Finite-difference approximations to the governing equations are solved on a rectangular spatial mesh using explicit temporal differencing. Computational inefficiency at low Mach number is avoided br reducing the effective sound speed. The overall computational model is embodied in a new computer code called LAVA. Computational results and comparisons with experimental data are presented Jbr LAVA simulations of a steady-stare axisymmetric argon plasma jet flowing into cold argon.     

The Role of Transport Phenomena and Modeling in the Development of Thermal Plasma Technology

A brief overview is presented of the principal areas where thermal plasmas had a significant technological impact over the past century. This is followed by an analysis of the specific role played by modelling and studies of transport phenomena under plasma conditions for three specific examples. The first dealing with the development of inductively coupled plasma sources. The following two examples deals with process development for the in-flight melting and spheroidization of powders, and the synthesis of nano-powders. Emphasis is placed on the critical role of plasma–particle interactions under dense loading conditions. A proposal is made for a relatively simple thermodynamic model which can be used for the estimation of the theoretical limits for the processing rates possible with different powders in each of these two cases. The model takes into account radiative energy losses from the surface of the particles and from the formed vapor cloud in the plasma, as well as the residual energy in the gases at the exit of the plasma reactor which are not accessible for process needs.     

Particle Injection in Direct Current Air Plasma Spray: Salient Observations and Optimization Strategies

External injection of high-melting point low thermal conductivity ceramics orthogonal to a typical direct current thermal plasma jet plays a vital role in determining the in-flight state of the particles and the process downstream. The interactions between low density ceramic particles and high temperature plasma jet is quite complex, which influences the spray process and associated deposition. Detailed in-flight particle diagnostics as well as spray stream visualization have significantly enhanced our capability to diagnose and control the process. In this paper we present some salient observations on the role of key variables on particle injection. A number of experiments were conducted using a 7MB torch (Sulzer Metco, Westbury, NY) with both Ar–H₂ and N₂–H₂ plasma gases, where the carrier gas flow to inject Yttria Stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) was varied systematically and the resulting in-flight particle state was captured using an array of particle and spray stream sensors arranged in a 3D set-up. A notable observation is the existence of a “sweet-spot” in the plasma jet where the particle temperatures and velocities achieved a maximum. This sweet-spot can be characterized by the plume position (location of centroid of the spray stream) rather than carrier gas flow rate and is independent of primary gas flows and other process/material conditions. This result suggests a possible approach to optimize particle injection independent of plasma-forming-torch-parameters. Controlling particle injection at this sweet-spot has shown to benefit the overall process efficiency (in terms of melting) and process reliability (both in-flight measurement and coating build-up) with concomitant application benefits.     

CFD Simulation of a Hydrogen／Argon Plasma Jet Reactor for Coal Pyrolysis

A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model was formulated for DC arc hydrogen/argon plasma jet re-actors used in the process of the thermal H2/Ar plasma pyrolysis of coal to acetylene. In this model, fluid flow, convective heat transfer and conjugate heat conductivity are considered simultaneously. The error caused by estimating the inner-wall temperature of a reactor is avoided. The thermodynamic and transport properties of the hydrogen/argon mixture plasma system, which are usually expressed by a set of discrete da-ta, are fitted into expressions that can be easily implemented in the program. The effects of the turbulence are modeled by two standard k-ε equations. The temperature field and velocity field in the plasma jet reactor were calculated by employing SIMPLEST algorithm. The knowledge and insight obtained are useful for the design improvement and scale-up of plasma reactors.     

Influence of the Gas Injection Angle on the Jet Characteristics of a Non-transferred DC Plasma Torch

The non-transferred direct current (DC) plasma torch has been widely used in various industrial applications due to its special jet characteristics. The jet characteristics are determined by different factors, including the working parameters, the torch construction, the gas injection angle (GIA) etc. As there is little study on the influence of the GIA on the jet characteristics, experimental study on the GIA’s effects on the jet characteristics has been carried out on a specially designed non-transferred DC plasma torch, whose GIA can be changed by replacing a gas injection component. The arc voltages and thermal efficiencies of the plasma torch, the specific enthalpies and jet lengths of the plasma jets at different working conditions were obtained and analyzed. It has been found that the GIA greatly affects the arc voltage, the thermal efficiency, the specific enthalpy and the jet length. Based on these findings, plasma torch with appropriate GIA could be used to help generating the plasma jet with desired characteristics.     

Heat Generation and Particle Injection in a Thermal Plasma Torch

The operation of plasma guns used for plasma spraying involves a continuous movement of the anode arc root. The resulting fluctuations of voltage and thermal energy input introduce an undesirable element in the spray process. This paper deals with the effects of these arc instabilities on the plasma jet, and the behavior of particles injected in the flow. The first part refers to the formation of the plasma jet. Measurements show that the static behavior of the arc depends strongly upon the plasma-forming gas mixture, especially the mass flow rate, of the heavy gas, injection mode, nozzle diameter, and arc current. These parameters control the electric field in the arc column, the arc length, its stability, and the gas velocity and temperature. The dynamic behavior of the arc is examined to determine how the tempeature and velocity of the plasma gas vary with voltage variations. Relationships between the gas velocity at the nozzle exit and the lifetime of the arc roots, and the independent operating parameters of the gun can be established from a dimensional analysis. The second part discusses the interaction between the plasma jet and the particles injected into the flow. The parameters controlling particle injection and trajectory are examined to determine how injection velocity must vary with particle size and density to achieve a given trajectory. The effect of the transverse injection of the powder carrier gas is investigated using a 3-D computational fluid dynamics code. Finally, the effect of the jet fluctuations on particle trajectory is studied under the assumption that the jet velocity follows the voltage variation. The result is a continuous variation of the particle spray jet position in the flow. Experimental observations confirm the model predictions.     

Characterization of the Converging Jet Region in a Triple Torch Plasma Reactor

Enthalpy probe measurements were taken of the converging plasma plume in a triple torch plasma reactor and related to substrate heat flux measurements. Results show excellent entrainment of process gases injected into the converging plasma plume by way of the central injection probe. At lower pressures (40 kPa), the plasma volume is equivalent to at least a 3 cm diameter, 4 cm long cylinder, with relatively uniform temperature, velocity, and substrate heat flux profiles when compared to a typical dc arc jet. Converging plasma plume size, substrate heat flux, and enthalpy profiles are also shown to be a strong function of applied system power. Substrate heat flux measurements show smaller radial gradients than enthalpy probe measurements, because of the high radial velocity component of gases above the substrate boundary layer. Enthalpy probe measurements were also conducted for diamond deposition conditions and approximate temperature and velocity profiles obtained. Problems with the uniform gas mixture assumption prohibited more accurate measurements. Reproducibility of enthalpy measurement results was shown with an average standard deviation of 11.8% for the velocity and 7.6% for the temperature measurements.     

Spatially resolved optical emission studies of fluorocarbon RF plasma through the use of UV-transmitting optical fibers

A technique for collecting spatially resolved optical emission from large rf plasma reactors is described. To demonstrate the sensitivity and versatility of this technique, emission within the quartz ultraviolet, 225–253 nm, was studied with particular emphasis on the plasma dark space. Spatial variations of CF₂, AlF, and C atom emission were monitored. These results have been used for discussion and evaluation of various plasma excitation and reaction mechanisms involving atomic carbon in fluorocarbon plasmas.     

Diamond synthesis by DC thermal plasma CVD at 1 atm

Diamond crystals and films have been success full y synthesized by DC thermal plasma jet CVD at a pressure of I atrn. A novel triple torch plasma reactor has been used to generate a convergent plasma volume to entrain the participating gases. Three coalescing plasma jets produces! by this reactor direct the dissociated and ionized gaseous species onto ( 100) silicon wafer substrates where the diamond grows. In a typical 10-min run, depending on the method of .substrate preparation, either microcrystals with sizes up to 8 m or continuous films with thicknesses of 1–2 m have been obtained. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy have been used for the characterization of the crystals and of the films.     

Design and Characteristics of a Laminar Plasma Torch for Materials Processing

Thermal plasma jets have been widely used in various materials processing techniques. However, the conventional thermal plasma torches usually generate turbulent plasma jets with the disadvantages of high axial temperature gradient, a short jet length and difficulties in the process control relatively, limiting its applications to materials processing. Therefore, this paper proposes a new laminar plasma torch (LPT) working with pure nitrogen to generate laminar plasma jet (LPJ). Its design and structural characteristics, e.g. segmented anode, axial gas injection, parallel water cooling structure, etc., are detailed to ensure the stability, the favorable temperature and velocity distribution of the generated LPJ. Experiments on the characteristics of the LPT showed that the generated LPJ possessed high specific enthalpy (ranging between 10 and 90 kJ/g), long jet length (maximum length: 480 mm) and low axial temperature gradient, and its output power a current and the gas flow rate. In addition, the thermal efficiency of the LPT was experimentally determined to be ranging between 25 and 45 %. Furthermore, experiment and simulation on the application of the LPJ for surface quenching verified the even radial temperature distribution of the plasma jet and high heat flux density brought to the surface.     

Mixing study of the induction plasma reactor: Part II. Radial injection mode

A study was undertaken on the mixing pattern in am induction plasma torch and reactor system. The results presented in this part of the paper relate to the radial injection mode, in which an auxiliary gas is injected into the main plasma stream through a set of 2, 4, or 8 injection ports located in the torch nozzle at the level of the torch exit flange. A much faster mixing of the gases occurred in this mode compared to the axial injection mode investigated in Part I of this paper. As in the case of axial injection, the present study demonstrates that gas mixing, in the presence of the discharge, is considerably more difficult than under ambient temperature conditions. Lower turbulence levels exist in the plasma reactor. due to the considerably higher viscosity of the gases under plasma conditions. Results obtained with a three-point injection flange, in which the injection ports were oriented at 45° to the torch and reactor axes toward the upstream .side, mere most interesting since they achieved essentially the same degree of mixing as was obtained with the radial injection ports without the need to locate the injection ports at the exit nozzle of the plasma torch. This arrangement provides for added flexibility in reactor design.     

Two-Temperature Two-Dimensional Non Chemical Equilibrium Modeling of Ar–CO<Subscript>2</Subscript>–H<Subscript>2</Subscript> Induction Thermal Plasmas at Atmospheric Pressure

Here the authors developed a two-dimensional two-temperature chemical non-equilibrium (2T-NCE) model of Ar–CO₂–H₂ inductively coupled thermal plasmas (ICTP) around atmospheric pressure (760 torr). Assuming 22 different particles in this model and by solving mass conservation equations for each particle, considering diffusion, convection and net production terms resulting from 198 chemical reactions, chemical non-equilibrium effects were taken into account. Species density of each particle or simply particle composition was also derived from the mass conservation equation of each one taking the non chemical equilibrium effect into account. Transport and thermodynamic properties of Ar–CO₂–H₂ thermal plasmas were self-consistently calculated using the first order approximation of the Chapman–Enskog method at each iteration point implementing the local particle composition and temperature. Calculations at reduced pressure (500 and 300 torr) were also done to investigate the effect of pressure on non-equilibrium condition. Results obtained by the present model were compared with results from one temperature chemical equilibrium (1T-CE) model, one-temperature chemically non equilibrium (1T-NCE) model and finally with 2T-NCE model of Ar–N₂–H₂ plasmas. Investigation shows that consideration of non-chemical equilibrium causes the plasma volume radially wider than CE model due to particle diffusion. At low pressure with same input power, presence of diffusion is relatively stronger than at high pressure. Comparison of present reactive model with non-reactive Ar–N₂–H₂ plasmas shows that maximum temperature reaches higher in reactive C–H–O molecular system than non-reactive plasmas due to extra contribution of reaction heat.     

Numerical Modeling of an Ar–H<Subscript>2</Subscript> Radio-Frequency Plasma Reactor under Thermal and Chemical Nonequilibrium Conditions

The species densities and the thermal and chemical nonequilibrium phenomena in an Ar–H₂ radio frequency inductively coupled plasma reactor used for hydrogenation of materials have been investigated through numerical simulation. The mathematical model consists of a two-temperature fluid dynamics model and a chemical kinetics model that takes into account the effect of local chemical nonequilibrium. Computations are carried out for the rf plasma running at 11.7 kW and 27 kPa for different Ar–H₂ mixtures and for pure argon. Predicted results for the electron and heavy-species temperatures, the species densities, as well as the degree of thermal and chemical nonequilibrium, are presented in detail. It is found that the electron and hydrogen atom densities in the reactor and in the near-wall region of the torch are strongly altered by nonequilibrium effects. The hydrogen atom density remains high in the reactor zone, and peaks in a region that has been found to be attractive for material processing. Deviations from thermal and chemical equilibrium are greatly reduced by the addition of hydrogen to an argon plasma.     

Excitation Temperature and Constituent Concentration Profiles of the Plasma Jet Under Plasma Spray-PVD Conditions

Plasma spray-physical vapor deposition (PS-PVD) is a promising technology to produce columnar structured thermal barrier coatings with excellent cyclic lifetime. The characteristics of plasma jets generated by standard plasma gases in the PS-PVD process, argon and helium, have been studied by optical emission spectroscopy. Abel inversion was introduced to reconstruct the spatial characteristics. In the central area of the plasma jet, the ionization of argon was found to be one of the reasons for low emission of atomic argon. Another reason could be the demixing so that helium prevails around the central axis of the plasma jet. The excitation temperature of argon was calculated by the Boltzmann plot method. Its values decreased from the center to the edge of the plasma jet. Applying the same method, a spurious high excitation temperature of helium was obtained, which could be caused by the strong deviation from local thermal equilibrium of helium. The addition of hydrogen into plasma gases leads to a lower excitation temperature, however a higher substrate temperature due to the high thermal conductivity induced by the dissociation of hydrogen. A loading effect is exerted by the feedstock powder on the plasma jet, which was found to reduce the average excitation temperature considerably by more than 700 K in the Ar/He jet.