Electrical conductance decay of arc columns in some common gases

Experimental measurements are reported of the conductance decay following current interruption of wall stabilised arcs in air, nitrogen, argon, oxygen and helium within the current range 6–42 A. The results are compared with the predictions of several analytical models so that the influence of various gas properties and processes may be estimated. Measurements in the molecular gases show clearly how the arc structure affects the recovery. The results in the inert gases differ to some extent from the predictions of the simple models.