Table of contents

Inductively coupled plasmas (ICPs) are used in spectrochemical analyses. The introduction of the sample by means of an aerosol are widely used. The introduction and the total evaporation of the aerosol is required in order to obtain a good repeatability and reproducibility of analyses. To check whether the vaporization of the aerosol droplets inside the plasma is completed, a solution could be used to compare the experimental results of the emission spectral lines with theoretical results. An accurate calculation code to obtain monatomic spectral lines intensities is therefore required, which is the purpose of the present paper. The mixtures of argon, water and nitric acid are widely used in spectrochemical analyses with ICPs. With these mixtures, we calculate the composition, thermodynamic functions and monatomic spectral lines intensities of the plasma at thermodynamic equilibrium and at atmospheric pressure. To obtain a self sufficient paper and also to allow other researchers to compare their results, all required data and a robust accurate algorithm, which is simple and easy to compute, are given.

A two-dimensional model of a weakly-ionized hydrogen direct-current (DC) discharge at low pressure is simulated. In the model, the metal electron overflow and secondary electron emission coefficient at the cathode spot are introduced to represent the relationship between the electron and ion density, and the electron energy distribution function is expressed by kinetic theory The electron current density and reaction constant reasonably set on the boundary are discussed. It is determined that 11 collision reactions play a major role in low pressure and weakly ionized hydrogen discharge. On this basis, the relationship between mobility, electrode spacing, and breakdown voltage is verified. Good agreement is achieved between the simulation curve and Paschen curve.

The isentropic exponent of single-ionized mono-atomic plasmas in thermal equilibrium is studied. Its behavior as a function of the ionization degree and temperature is examined for argon and zinc plasmas at two pressures (1 bar and 1 mbar, 1 mPa and 1 Pa), respectively. The results show that for the two sorts of plasma the isentropic exponent equals typically about 1.1∼1.2 within a considerably wide range of the ionization degree (5%∼80%).

In the plasma sheath a narrow plasma channel generated by ultraintense laser pulses is simplified as a special cylindrical and hollow plasma waveguide with the infinite thickness of the plasma cladding. The electromagnetic wave (EM) propagation properties of the plasma channel near the cutoff and far from the cutoff are considered. Theoretical analysis shows that TE_0m and TM_0m and hybrid modes emerge in the plasma channel, which is influenced by the normalized frequency parameter B and numerical aperture N A. The cutoffs of the various modes are approximated. Single-mode operation is possible without a high-frequency limitation in the channel.

Dedicated experiments in the HT-7 tokamak were performed to investigate the influence of erosion and deposition on the mirror samples. The first mirror (FM) samples made of polycrystalline (PC) stainless steel (SS), molybdenum (Mo) and tungsten (W) were fixed on a holder at an angle of 45° with respect to the horizontal plane and set at different locations with different connection lengths along the magnetic field. The optical reflectivity of the first mirror was measured by a spectrophotometer before and after plasma exposure. It was found that the surface morphology and specular reflectivity of the mirror samples after the exposure were different with respect to the different distances from the mirror surface to the last closed flux surface (LCFS) of the plasma in the tokamak. It was also found that shortening the connection length before the mirror surface would weaken the influence of the plasma erosion and impurity deposition on the mirror surface. In order to maintain the optical characteristics of the mirror surface, it is necessary to adopt the in-situ cleaning and mirror protection techniques.

The gliding arc can offer high energy efficiency and selectivity for chemical reactions and has been widely applied in material processing, environmental protection and other industrial areas. But the discharge properties, measurement of plasma parameters and related physical processes of the gliding arc discharge still need to further studied. In this study, the gliding arc was driven by the transverse magnetic field to produce the non-equilibrium plasma at high pressure. The parameters of the plasma at our observed point were measured by optical methods. The experimental result shows that the electron temperature is about 0.6 eV and the heavy particle temperature is approximately 2987±250 K.

A zero-dimensional model which includes 56 species of reactants and 427 reactions is used to study the behavior of charged particles in atmospheric plasmas with different ionization degrees at low altitude (near 0 km). The constant coefficient nonlinear equations are solved by using the Quasi-steady-state approximation method. The electron lifetimes are obtained for afterglow plasma with different initial values, and the temporal evolutions of the main charged species are presented, which are dominant in reaction processes. The results show that the electron number density decays quickly. The lifetimes of electrons are shortened by about two orders with increasing ionization degree. Electrons then attach to neutral particles and produce negative ions. When the initial electron densities are in the range of 10¹⁰ ∼ 10¹⁴ cm⁻³, the negative ions have sufficiently high densities and long lifetimes for air purification, disinfection and sterilization. Electrons, O₂⁻, O₄⁻, CO₄⁻ and CO₃⁻ are the dominant negative species when the initial electron density n_e0 ≤ 10¹³ cm⁻³, and only electrons and CO₃⁻ are left when n_e0 ≥ 10¹⁵ cm⁻³ · N⁺₂, N⁺₄ and O⁺₂ are dominant in the positive charges for any ionization degree. Other positive species, such as O⁺₄, N⁺₃, NO⁺, NO⁺₂, Ar⁺₂ and H₃O⁺·H₂O, are dominant only for a certain ionization degree and in a certain period.

Dielectric-barrier discharges (DBDs) in atmospheric pressure air have been studied by using a power-frequency voltage source. In this paper the electrical characteristics of DBDs using glass and alumina dielectrics have been investigated experimentally. According to the Lissajous figures of voltage-charges, it is discovered that the discharge power for an alumina dielectric is much higher than that for a glass dielectric at the same applied voltage. Also, the voltage-current curves of the glass and alumina dielectrics confirm the fact that the dielectric barriers behave like semiconducting materials at certain applied voltages.

Using argon as the work gas, the effects and mechanisms of poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) film surface modification were investigated in a low pressure plasma reactor. Results show that higher hydrophilicity with little degradation, in terms of the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), was obtained after treatment, especially when the sample was placed in the post-discharge area. More polar functional groups and higher surface free energy, especially the polar component, formed on the PTFE surface were responsible for the modification. For the relatively high purity radicals and rare discharge particles in the post-discharge area, the etching was restrained and the introducing reactions were enhanced, and thus, a better modification occurred there.

In this work, a Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) air plasma was used to sterilize Escherichia coli (E. coli) on the surface of medical Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) film. The leakage of cellular DNA and protein by optical absorbance measurement at 260 nm and 280 nm, together with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) about cell morphology were performed after sterilization to analyse inactivation mechanisms. The results indicated that the DBD air plasma was very effective in E. coli sterilization. The plasma germicidal efficiency depended on the plasma treatment time, the air-gap distance, and the applied voltage. Within 5 min of plasma treatment, the germicidal efficiency against E. coli could reach 99.99%. An etching action on cell membranes by electrons, ions and radicals is the primary mechanism for DBD air plasma sterilization, which leads to the effusion of cellular contents (DNA and protein) and bacterial death.

The interaction of laser-induced plasma and bow shock over a blunt body is investigated numerically in an M_∞ = 6.5 supersonic flow. A ray-tracing method is used for simulating the process of laser focusing. The gas located at the focused zone is ionized and broken down and transformed into plasma. In a supersonic flow the plasma moves downstream and begins to interact with the bow shock when it approaches the surface of the blunt body. The parameters of flowfield and blunt body surface are changed due to the interaction. By analyzing phenomena occurring in the complex unsteady flowfield during the interaction in detail, we can better understand the change of pressure on the blunt body surface and the mechanism of drag reduction by laser energy deposition. The results show that the bow shock is changed into an oblique shock due to the interaction of the laser-induced low-density zone with the bow shock, so the wave drag of the blunt body is reduced.

Two techniques are applied to diagnose characteristic parameters of plasma created by hypervelocity impact, such as electron temperature and electron density. The first technique is a sweep Langmuir probe (SLP), which is a new apparatus based on a dual channel circuit that can compensate for stray capacitance and obtain a good synchronicity, so that electrostatic turbulence with a good temporal resolution can be acquired. The second technique is a triple Langmuir probe (TLP), which is an electrostatic triple Langmuir probe diagnostic system, in which no voltage and frequency sweep is required. This technique allows to measure electron temperature, electron density as a function of time. Moreover, the triple Langmuir probe diagnostic system allows the direct display of electron temperature and semidirect display of electron density by an appropriate display system, the system permits us to eliminate almost all data processing procedures. SLP and TLP were applied to obtain fluctuations of the characteristic parameters of plasma generated by hypervelocity impact. As an example of their application to time-dependent plasma measurement, the electron temperature and electron density of plasmas were acquired in hypervelocity impact experiments. Characteristic parameters of plasma generated by hypervelocity impact were compared by the two kinds of diagnostic techniques mentioned above.

The plasma parameters of planar-type surface-wave plasmas (SWPs) are diagnosed based on the resonant excitation of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs). The plasma parameter distributions are obtained by changing the discharge conditions of gas pressure and incident power. The measured experimental results show that the plasma near the heating layer is excited by surface waves of SPPs while the plasma located downstream originates from diffusion Moreover, the influence of high-frequency oscillations plays a significant role in producing the proposed SWPs with bi-Maxwellian electron energy distributions.

A triggered surge protective device is designed and its discharge characteristics are studied. The experimental results show that the triggered surge protective device has excellent surge protective characteristics. When the gap distance is 5 mm, p · d is 90 Pa·mm and without an active energy trigger circuit, the DC breakdown voltage of the triggered surge protective device is 2.32 kV and the pulse breakdown voltage is 5.75 kV. Therefore, the pulse voltage ratio, which is defined as the specific value of pulse breakdown voltage and DC breakdown voltage, is 2.48. With a semiconductor ZnO flashover trigger device and an active energy coupling trigger circuit, the pulse breakdown voltage can be reduced to 3.32 kV, the pulse voltage ratio is 1.43 and the response time is less than 100 ns. These results are helpful in laying a theoretical foundation for further studies on triggered surge protective devices.

The superconducting dipole prototype magnet of the collector ring for the Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR) is an international cooperation project. The collaborative simulation and testing of the developed prototype magnet is presented in this paper. To evaluate the mechanical strength of the coil case during quench, a 3-dimensional (3D) electromagnetic (EM) model was developed based on the solid97 magnetic vector element in the ANSYS commercial software, which includes the air region, coil and yoke. EM analysis was carried out with a peak operating current at 278 A. Then, the solid97 element was transferred into the solid185 element, the coupled analysis was switched from electromagnetic to structural, and the finite element model for the coil case and glass-fiber reinforced composite (G10) spacers was established by the ANSYS Parametric Design Language based on the 3D model from the CATIA V5 software. However, to simulate the friction characteristics inside the coil case, the conta173 surface-to-surface contact element was established. The results for the coil case and G10 spacers show that they are safe and have sufficient strength, on the basis of testing in discharge and quench scenarios.