Self-organization of the channel structure of a nanosecond diffuse discharge in a wire-plane electrode system

The results of an experimental study of the spatial structure of a high-voltage diffuse discharge in a wire-plane electrode system are presented. Self-organization of the discharge current channels into regular cells is observed in the plane perpendicular to the electric field vector. The dependences of the structural parameters of the discharge in centimeter-sized gaps on the interelectrode distance are studied at air pressures within the range 220–760 torr. Self-organization of the discharge structure is explained in terms of the electric interaction among charges of the diffuse channel heads during bridging of the gap.     

High-intensity nanosecond photorefractive spatial solitons

We report the observation of high-intensity solitons in a bulk strontium barium niobate crystal. The solitons are observed by use of 8-ns optical pulses with optical intensities greater than 100 MW/cm(2). Each soliton forms and attains its minimum width after roughly ten pulses and reaches e(-1) of the steady-state width after the first pulse. We find good agreement between experimental observations and theoretical predictions for the soliton existence curve.     

Electromagnetic radiation of a nanosecond discharge in an open gas-filled diode

The properties of the discharge in and radiation from an open gas-filled diode to which high-voltage nanosecond pulses are applied from the RADAN-220 generator are studied. Electromagnetic radiation in the X-ray, UV, visible, and near-IR ranges of the spectrum, as well as high-power subnanosecond (0.5-to 0.7-ns-long) pulses of ultra-wide-band (UWB) electromagnetic radiation, are recorded when a diffuse discharge is initiated in atmospheric pressure air. For the coaxial cathode and anode, the open gas diode emits radially polarized UWB pulses, whereas for the cathode in the form of a segment, the UWB radiation is linearly polarized. The effective potential for both designs of the diode is ER = 6 kV. It is shown that the plasma in the discharge gap serves as a source of soft X rays and the metallic anode generates hard X rays.     

Experimental study of the discharge glow structure in the initial phase of a nanosecond breakdown of an insulating gap

The diffuse phase of high-voltage nanosecond atmospheric-pressure discharges in insulating gaps with a highly nonuniform electric field has been studied experimentally with the purpose of developing methods for protecting power supply equipment from natural and man-caused overvoltages. The structure of the discharge glow in 6- to 12-cm rod-plane gaps has been investigated for five configurations of the rod cathode. It is found that the discharge can exist in different forms and that the occurrence of one or another type of discharge is probabilistic in character. The electric characteristics of the discharge have been studied as functions of the electrode gap length for two types of cathode that provide the preferential development of volume and multichannel discharges. It is shown that the main factors governing the shape of the discharge glow are the distribution of the electric field near the cathode in the voltage growth phase and the dynamics of the accompanying discharge processes.     

Experimental investigation of nanosecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation

In this paper we report on an experimental study of the characteristics of nanosecond pulsed discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation. The N 2 (C 3 Π u ) rotational and vibrational temperatures are around 430 K and 0.24 eV, respectively. The emission intensity ratio between the first negative system and the second positive system of N 2 , as a rough indicator of the temporally and spatially averaged electron energy, has a minor dependence on applied voltage amplitude. The induced flow direction is not parallel, but vertical to the dielectric layer surface, as shown by measurements of body force, velocity, and vorticity. Nanosecond discharge plasma aerodynamic actuation is effective in airfoil flow separation control at freestream speeds up to 100 m/s.     

Development of high-voltage nanosecond discharge in combustible mixtures

The discharge development inmethane- and hydrogen-oxygenmixtures under repeated high-voltage nanosecond pulses is studied. It is shown that the fraction of the energy deposited in the methane-oxygen-mixture discharge and the maximum discharge current pass through a minimum with increasing number of pulses, and the plasma decay rate, on the contrary, reaches a maximum. The observed features are explained by partial fuel oxidation with the result that intermediate components are accumulated in the combustiblemixture, which result in rapid electron loss and decay plasma enhancement.     

Characteristics of a nanosecond discharge in atmospheric air with a liquid electrolytic electrode

The spatial, electric, and radiative characteristics of a pulse-periodic nanosecond discharge between an electrode based on a system of blades and the distilled water surface as well as an aqueous solution of zinc sulfate in atmospheric air are considered.     

Neutron emission during a nanosecond discharge in deuterium in a nonuniform electric field

Neutron emission during a nanosecond deuterium discharge formed at the nonuniform electric field is investigated. A stable neutron yield is observed when the cathode is made of metallic plates covered by a layer of deuterated zirconium and the anode is made of stainless steel in the form of a tube. It is shown that, when the deuterium pressure equals several Torr, neutrons are emitted from both deuterated and deuterium-free cathodes. The influence of the anode design on the neutron yield is studied.     

气体放电中纳秒脉冲波形的实验研究

在利用示波器测试交流电弧发生器的一级放电回路的振荡波形时,在主振荡波形中观测到纳秒脉冲振荡波形.针对纳秒脉冲振荡波形进行了实验研究和初步的理论分析,所采用的实验方法能够为气体放电的纳秒脉冲研究提供一种新的实验依据.     

Plasma parameters at nanosecond breakdown and capillary discharge in a solid insulator

The subject of investigation is the energy-mass composition of a plasma resulting from the breakdown of KCl single crystals and from discharges in capillaries produced by the breakdown of KCl and high-pressure polyethylene samples. The plasma flux formed by the head of the discharge channel in KCl is found to be much less intense than the plasma flux due to the capillary and surface discharges. Also, the first breakdown of KCl does not produced multiply charged ions of the related material. It is revealed that the energies and charge numbers for the capillary and surface discharges are close to each other.     

纳秒脉冲放电处理有机染料废水的实验研究

随着印染行业的快速发展,印染废水的排放与日俱增。由于废水中的有机物具有成分复杂、难以降解的特点,若未经有效处理直接排放,会对生态环境造成严重的污染和危害。试验设计了一种多针-网式反应器循环处理有机组分为酸性红73（AR73）的模拟废水,其采用自行设计的基于TLT（Transmission Line Transformer）的高压重频纳秒脉冲电源驱动。电源可以产生峰值电压为50 kV,脉宽40 ns,上升沿20 ns的纳秒脉冲信号,工作频率可达500 Hz。试验考察了峰值电压、放电频率、染料初始质量浓度及作用时间等因素对AR73降解效果的影响。为评价处理效果,采用紫外分光光度法分别测量了废水中剩余染料浓度、过氧化氢浓度等指标。结果表明,在初始浓度30 mg/L,循环流量3.4 L/min,放电间距30 mm,峰值电压44.26 kV,放电频率200 Hz条件下处理30 min,AR73降解率可以达到83.20%,单次脉冲注入能量为11.73 mJ,过氧化氢浓度为47.36 μmol/L,反应器脱色能效（G₅₀）可以达到31.07 g·kW⁻¹·h⁻¹。增大放电电压可以进一步提高AR73降解率,溶液中活性物质浓度提高,但是能量效率有所下降。     

Soft X-ray radiation due to a nanosecond diffuse discharge in atmospheric-pressure air

A source of soft X-rays with an effective photon energy of 9 keV and a subnanosecond pulse width is built around a gas diode filled with atmospheric-pressure air and a UAEB-150 generator. A collector placed behind a grounded mesh electrode detects an electron beam and a pulse with positive polarity, the latter being due to an electric field surrounding the mesh. It is shown that the intensity of soft X-rays from the gas-diode-based source depends on the material of a massive potential anode; namely, it grows with an increase in the atomic number of the cathode material. In the case of a tantalum anode, X-ray photons with an effective energy of 9 and 17 keV contribute to the exposure dose.     

Beam electron energy distribution at a volume nanosecond discharge in atmospheric-pressure air

The energy distributions of beam electrons and x-ray photons in a volume nanosecond discharge on atmospheric-pressure air are studied. Several groups of elevated-energy electrons are found. It is shown that electrons with an energy from several tens to several hundreds of kiloelectronvolts (which is lower than a maximal voltage across the gap) make a major contribution to the beam current measured behind thin foils. It is corroborated that fast electrons (with an energy from several kiloelectronvolts to several tens of kiloelectron-volts) arise 100–150 ps before the basic peak of the beam current, elongating the current pulse and significantly increasing its amplitude. The contribution from electrons with an anomalously high energy (exceeding a maximal voltage across the gap) to the beam current is shown to be insignificant (less than 5%). The x-ray spectra in gas-filled diodes of different design are studied. Techniques of measuring the subnanosecond electron beam current and mechanisms generating fast and runaway electrons in volume high-pressure gas discharges are analyzed.     

纳秒脉冲电压下同轴场畸变开关多通道放电特性

使气体开关形成多通道放电是减小开关电感、通道电阻、电极熔蚀,提高开关寿命和稳定性的有效措施。设计了一种同轴场畸变气体火花开关,研究了开关在纳秒脉冲电压下的多通道放电现象。研究了脉冲电压上升速率与多通道放电特性的关系,比较了两种体积比的SF6/Ar混合气体多通道放电特性。实验结果表明：一定气压下,平均通道数随着脉冲电压上升率增加而增多,电流分布趋向均匀;相同脉冲峰值与气压比值,不同气压下,高气压下的通道数较多;SF6//Ar混合气体中,氩气含量较高情况下多通道放电特性较好。最后,结合J.C.Martin的多通道放电理论对实验结果作出了初步解释。     

纳秒脉冲电压下同轴场畸变开关多通道放电特性

使气体开关形成多通道放电是减小开关电感、通道电阻、电极熔蚀,提高开关寿命和稳定性的有效措施。设计了一种同轴场畸变气体火花开关,研究了开关在纳秒脉冲电压下的多通道放电现象。研究了脉冲电压上升速率与多通道放电特性的关系,比较了两种体积比的SF6/Ar混合气体多通道放电特性。实验结果表明:一定气压下,平均通道数随着脉冲电压上升率增加而增多,电流分布趋向均匀;相同脉冲峰值与气压比值,不同气压下,高气压下的通道数较多;SF6/Ar混合气体中,氩气含量较高情况下多通道放电特性较好。最后,结合J.C.Martin的多通道放电理论对实验结果作出了初步解释。     

Structure of the glow of a nanosecond diffuse discharge in a strongly nonuniform electric field

The structure of the glow of a diffuse discharge in air under atmospheric pressure is studied in detail in the “rod (cathode)-plane” geometry for an electrode gap of 10 cm and a cathode tip radius from 3 cm to 2.4 μm. The amplitude of voltage across the gap was ～ 220 kV for voltage growth rate of ～10¹³ V/s and a pulse duration of 180 ns. It is found that the shape of the discharge glow strongly depends on the radius of the cathode tip. For large values of the radius, the multichannel form of the glow prevails, which is statistically transformed into a volume glow as the radius decreases from 5 mm to 60 μm. This transition is accompanied by a decrease in the amplitude of the discharge current from 440 to 140 A on the average. For ultrasmall radii of the cathode (2.4–7.7 μm), the multichannel form of the glow prevails again and the amplitude of the discharge current increases up to ～300 A.     

Conventional spark versus nanosecond repetitively pulsed discharge for a turbulence facilitated ignition phenomenon

This work applies both conventional-single-spark-discharge (CSSD) at 500-µs pulse duration time and nanosecond-repetitively-pulsed-discharge (NRPD) at various pulsed-repetitive-frequency PRF = 5–70 kHz to explore a turbulence facilitated ignition (TFI) phenomenon using a pair of pin-to-pin electrodes at an inter-electrode gap of 0.8 mm in randomly-stirred lean n-butane/air mixture with Lewis number ? 1. For CSSD, measured laminar and turbulent minimum ignition energies (MIE_L and MIE_T) at 50% ignitability show that MIE_L≈ 23 mJ > the smallest MIE_T≈ 19.7 mJ at u′ = 0.9 m/s (TFI) and then MIE_T≈ 28.6/30.8/36.8 mJ at u′ = 1.4/2.1/2.8 m/s (no TFI), where u′ is the r.m.s turbulent fluctuating velocity. For comparison, all NRPD experiments apply the same total ignition energy E_tot≈ 23 mJ via a fixed train of 11 pulses, each pulse with 2.2 mJ except for the first pulse with 1 mJ. NRPD results show a cumulatively synergistic effect depending on the coherence between PRF and an inward reactant flow recirculation frequency (f_RC) inside the torus-like kernel induced by the discharge that could enhance ignition. When PRF is approximately synchronizing with f_RC, the synergistic effect is most profound at PRF = 20-kHz/40-kHz with very high ignition probability P_ig = 90%/85% > 50% in quiescence, whereas lower values of P_ig = 42%/34% are found at PRF = 10-kHz/60-kHz. Further, P_ig = 0 at PRF = 5-kHz even when 5000 pulses (E_tot≈ 10 J) are applied. We discover that P_ig decreases significantly with increasing u′ for most PRFs (no TFI) except at higher PRF ≥ 60 kHz showing possible TFI. These results are attributed to the interactions between turbulent dissipation, differential diffusion, and synergistic influence, which are substantiated by Schlieren images of initial kernel development and the ignition time determined at one half of the flame critical radius that leads to a self-sustained spherical flame propagation.