Degradation of Organic Pollutants Using Atmospheric Pressure Glow Discharge Plasma

A method of plasma treatment in which a glow discharge was generated in the small gas gap between an electrode and a water surface was designed and employed in this study. By using this method, many active species were generated on the wastewater surface to degrade organic pollutants. The electric field distribution of the designed electrode model was simulated using the MAXWELL 3D^® simulation software, and the discharge parameters were measured to investigate the impact of design optimization. In addition, we designed an equipotential multi-electrode configuration to treat a methyl orange solution and an azobenzene solution. The experimental and simulation results indicate that the designed electrodes can realize glow discharge with a relatively low voltage and that the generated plasma covers a large area and is in a stable state. Accordingly, the method helped reduce the cost of the reactor and improved the effectiveness of wastewater treatment.