Sagdeev Potential and Sheath Criterion for a Multi‐Component Plasma

A charged sheath between a multi‐component plasma and an absorbing and conducting wall was considered analytically in the framework of a hydrodynamic model. The model accounted for the inertia and pressures of all the plasma components and both wall polarities. An existence criterion for the steady sheath with a monotonous distribution of the electric potential was derived based on analysis of the Sagdeev potential. The model was applied to some special cases of two‐and three‐component plasmas such as a plasma with macroparticles, and electro‐positive and ‐negative plasmas. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Structure of the charged sheath at the plasma-charged body boundary

Based on a hydrodynamic plasma model that incorporates the inertia and temperatures of the plasma components, we have analytically and numerically solved the problem on the structure of the charged sheath at the plasma-charged body boundary. We formulate a criterion for the existence of a stationary charged sheath at the plasma-charged body boundary for both charge signs and with allowance made for the inertia and temperatures of the charged plasma components. We determine the minimum and maximum electric potentials and densities of the charged plasma components in the sheath. We show that the charge profile in the sheath can form a double-layer structure in which the ion-depleted and electron-depleted sublayers are adjacent to the plasma and the charged body, respectively, with the electric potential in the sheath remaining monotonic.     

W-C Synthesis in a Pulsed Arc Submerged in Liquid

Pulsed arc production of tungsten carbide (W-C) powders in deionized water and analytical (99.8%) ethanol was studied. The arc was ignited between two submerged electrodes: one of 99.99% graphite (C) and the other of 99.5% W. The pulse energy and duration were in the ranges of 7.7–192 mJ and 25–65 μs, respectively. The WC_1−x production rate was maximized by configuring the C electrode as the anode and the W electrode as the cathode. The rate was greater in ethanol than in water. The rate of producing ∼10 nm particles in ethanol was two orders of magnitude greater when using W anode -C cathode configuration, than with the opposite polarity.     

The Double Sheath at the Plasma‐Wall Boundary

The relation between plasma parameters determining a steady‐state charged sheath at a plasma‐wall boundary was derived and analyzed using a fluid model, which accounted for inertia and partial pressure of both plasma components. The relation generalizes the well‐known Bohm criterion and, in particular, shows that a steadystate sheath may be formed in some cases where the Bohm criterion is not satisfied. Conditions allowing formation of a double sheath structure were formulated and analyzed. It was shown that the structure may be formed only if a) the generalized Bohm criterion is satisfied, and b) the Sagdeev potential has a minimum. The double sheath structure consists of two sub‐sheath of different polarity, which depends on the wall potential polarity and the relation between the plasma component temperatures and inertia. For positive wall potential, the sub‐sheath adjacent to the plasma (the sheath edge) is enriched by negative particles, and the sub‐sheath adjacent to the wall is enriched by positive particles, while the sub‐sheath polarities are reversed for negative wall potential. An analytical theory was formulated and illustrated by numerical solutions of the Poisson equation for special cases. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Removal of Methylene Blue from Aging Water Solutions Treated by a Submerged Arc

Low voltage, low energy submerged pulsed arcs with a pulse repetition rate of 100 Hz, energies of 2.6–192 mJ and durations of 10–40 μs, followed by aging in the dark, were used to decompose 10 mg/l methylene blue (MB) dissolved in 40 ml of water, with the addition of 0.5 % H₂O₂. Electrode pairs composed of Fe/Fe, Ti/Ti, Cu/Cu, Cu/Fe, Fe/Cu, Ti/Fe, Fe/Ti, Cu/Ti and Ti/Cu were used. MB degraded during arc treatment, and during post arc treatment aging. The aging degraded MB faster (by a factor of ~2–3) when the MB solution was subjected to arcing with dissimilar electrodes when one of them was Cu, than for arcing with other used electrode pairs. The impact of the arc treatment time and the electrode materials on the MB removal ratio (C₀–C_ta)/C₀ was determined as a function of aging time t_a, where C₀ and C_ta are the MB concentrations initially and after t_a. For a pulse duration of 10 μs and pulse energies of 2–20 mJ, the MB removal rate increased linearly with treatment time and its growth rate increased with pulse energy. The linear dependence of the MB removal rate on treatment time was violated with pulse duration of 40 μs and pulse energies of 30–200 mJ. Kinetics of the MB degradation during aging of the arc treated solution was well described by the 1st order linear rate equation.     

Presheath in Fully Ionized Collisional Plasma in a Magnetic Field

The quasineutral presheath layer at the boundary of fully ionized, collisional, and magnetized plasma with an ambipolar flow to an adjacent absorbing wall was analyzed using a two fluid magneto‐hydrodynamic model. The plasma is magnetized by a uniform magnetic field B , imposed parallel to the wall. The analysis did not assume that the dependence of the particle density on the electric potential in the presheath is according to the Boltzmann equilibrium, and the dependence of the mean collision time τ on the varying plasma density within the presheath was not neglected. Based on the model equations, algebraic expressions were derived for the dependence of the plasma density, electron and ion velocities, and the electrostatic potential on the position within the presheath. The solutions of the model equations depended on two parameters: Hall parameter (β ), and the ratio (γ ), where γ = ZT_e /(ZT_e + T_i ), and T_e , T_i and Z are the electron and ion temperatures and ionicity, respectively. The characteristic scale of the presheath extension is several times r_i /β , where r_i is the ion radius at the ion sound velocity. The electric potential could have a non monotonic distribution in the presheath. The ions are accelerated to the Bohm velocity (sound velocity) in the presheath mainly near the presheath‐sheath boundary, in a layer of thickness ～r_i /β . The electric field accelerates the ions in the whole presheath if their velocity in the wall direction exceeds their thermal velocity. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Submerged Arc Breakdown of Sulfadimethoxine (SDM) in Aqueous Solutions

Low voltage, low energy submerged pulsed arcs were used to break-down Sulfadimethoxine (SDM) contamination in aqueous solutions. The SDM concentration decreased exponentially with rate constants of 0.13–1.9 min⁻¹ during processing by pulsed arcs with a pulse repetition rate of 100 Hz, energies of 2.6–192 mJ and durations of 20, 50 and 100 μs. The electrical energy consumption was minimized with short duration pulses––1.5 kW-hr/m³ with 7.5 mJ, 20 μs pulses for 90% SDM removal.     

Submerged Arc Breakdown of Methylene Blue in Aqueous Solutions

Low voltage, low energy submerged pulsed arcs between a pair of carbon or iron electrodes with a pulse repetition rate of 100?Hz, energies of 2.6?C192?mJ and durations of 20, 50 and 100???s were used to remove methylene blue (MB) contamination from 30?ml aqueous solutions. The MB concentration decreased exponentially with rates of 0.0006?C0.0143?s^?1 during processing with the carbon electrode pair. With the iron electrodes, the MB concentration initially decreased faster (0.030?s^?1) than with the carbon electrodes, but later saturated. However when microparticles produced with the iron electrodes were periodically filtered, the high removal rate was maintained. Under these conditions, the volume of water which can be treated per unit energy expenditure was much higher with the submerged arc than with other plasma processes. A kinetic model based on MB degradation by OH· radicals formed by the discharge was formulated. The higher initial MB removal rate with iron electrodes is explained by additional OH· production from Fenton??s reaction between Fe⁺⁺ and H₂O₂ produced by the discharge. This rate is maintained if the eroded iron particles are filtered, but if eroded iron particles accumulate, degradation slows down and stops, possibly because the iron particles catalytically decompose H₂O₂ and hence stops Fenton??s reaction, and either directly or via increased Fe⁺⁺ dissolved from the particles, scavenge the OH· radicals.     

Propagation of vacuum arc plasma beam in a toroidal filter

An analytical solution to the problem of plasma beam transport in a toroidal magnetic filter for unmagnetized ions is derived. A two-fluid model taking into account electromagnetic and pressure forces, electron-ion collisions, magnetic force line curvature, and radial dependence of centrifugal force is used. From comparison with experimental data it is shown that the obtained solution describes well the main properties of plasma beam behavior in the filter, e.g. (1) the relative value of the ion current along the torus decreases exponentially, (2) the deflection of the plasma beam from the center of the torus correlates with the centrifugal drift of the plasma beam across a magnetic field, and (3) experiment and theory agree well on the weak correlation between magnetic field strength and filter efficiency     

W–C Electrode Erosion in a Pulsed Arc Submerged in Liquid

Electrode erosion was studied in pulsed arcs ignited between two electrodes comprised of 99.99% C (graphite) and 99.5% W submerged in deionized water or analytical (99.8%) ethanol. In the both cases the erosion rate increased proportionally to the pulse energy, and the total electrode erosion per unit energy was inversely proportional to the discharge pulse duration. Fifteen and sixty-μF discharge capacitors were used for formation of the pulses in water. It was obtained that, respectively (a) erosion of the tungsten anode (W_a) was by factors of 5–6 and ∼10 greater than that of the carbon (C_c) cathode; (b) erosion of the carbon anode (C_a) was by a factor of 1.34 greater and by a factor of 2.65 less than that of the tungsten cathode (W_c); (c) the total erosion rate of both electrodes (anode and cathode) per unit pulse energy for the W_a–C_c pair was greater by factors of 11 and 12.5 than that for the W_c–C_a pair.