A nanosecond pulsed discharge circuit model for engine applications

Non-equilibrium plasma discharges in spark gaps have been an increasingly studied method for alleviating cycle to cycle variation in lean and dilute combustion environments. However, ignition models that account for streamer propagation, cathode fall, and transmission line amplification over nanosecond time scales have so far not been developed. The present study develops such a model, with emphasis on the energy delivered from circuit to cylinder. Key pieces of the relevant physics and chemistry are summarized, simplified, and systematically coupled to one another. The set of parameters is limited to a handful of key observables and modeled using Modelica. Results show non-trivial behavior in the energy delivery characteristics of such discharges with important implications for ignition.

Charged particles density distribution in the cathode fall region of the glow discharge in helium

In the present work, the mechanism of formation and propagation of the group of high energy electrons in the cathode regions of a glow discharge in helium is discussed. Using the method of the Monte Carlo collisions simulation, the beam electron energy distribution function in the cathode fall region of a glow discharge has been determined in the gas pressure range of 30−70 Pa. It is shown that the electron distribution function at the end of the cathode fall region contains a lot of electrons which have no any collisions and have energies close to the cathode fall potential. On the basis of the obtained results the distribution of the ion density was simulated using the Poisson equation. It is shown that the ion density distribution stays almost constant in the cathode fall region. The beam and ion density increased with the pressure growth.

The Influence of Different Plasma Cell Discharges on the Performance Quality of Surgical Gown Samples

An experimental study was performed on a low-density plasma discharge using two different configurations of the plasma cell cathode, namely, the one mesh system electrodes (OMSE) and the one mesh and three system electrodes (OMTSE), to determine the electrical characteristics of the plasma such as current–voltage characteristics, breakdown voltage (VB), Paschen curves, current density (J), cathode fall thickness (dc), and electron density of the treated sample. The influence of the electrical characteristics of the plasma fluid in the cathode fall region for different cathode configuration cells (OMSE and OMTSE) on the performance quality of a surgical gown was studied to determine surface modification, treatment efficiency, exposure time, wettability property, and mechanical properties. Over a very short exposure time, the treatment efficiency for the surgical gown surface of plasma over the mesh cathode at a distance equivalent to the cathode fall distance dc values of the OMTSE and for OMSE reached a maximum. The wettability property decreased from 90 to 40% for OMTSE over a 180 s exposure time and decreased from 90 to 10% for OMSE over a 160 s exposure time. The mechanisms of each stage of surgical gown treatment by plasma are described. In this study, the mechanical properties of the untreated and treated surgical gown samples such as the tensile strength and elongation percentage, ultimate tensile strength, yield strength, strain hardening, resilience, toughness, and fracture (breaking) point were studied. Plasma had a more positive effect on the mechanical properties of the OMSE reactor than those of the OMTSE reactor.

Gas Temperature Distribution in Cathode Fall Region of Grimm Glow Discharge

Optical emission spectroscopy technique was used to measure gas temperature along the axis of cylindrical abnormal glow discharge parallel to the copper cathode surface (side-on) in hydrogen-argon mixture at low pressure. The rotational temperature of excited state of H₂ was determined from the rotational structure of Q branch of Fulcher-α diagonal bands using Boltzmann plot technique while the obtained ground vibrational state temperature is assumed to be equal to gas temperature. The temperature T₀ determined from the rotational population density distribution in an excited vibrational state can be considered as a valid estimation of the ground state temperatutre i.e. H₂ gas temperature.