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Generation of Long Laminar Plasma Jets: Experimental and Numerical Analyses

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Abstract

A novel direct current non-transferred arc plasma torch that can generate silent, stable and super-long laminar plasma jets in atmospheric air is investigated. The results showed that laminar plasma jets of length ranging from 100 to 720 mm in length can be generated by controlling the gas input rate ranging from 8.5 to 15 L min−1 and the output power from 8.5 to 28 kW. The length of the plasma jets generally increased with the output power and gas flow rate. Observations of temporal evolution of the plasma jet appearance and the voltage demonstrated that the jet is highly stable in the atmospheric environment. The fluid dynamic properties of the laminar plasma jet were studied using a numerical simulation incorporating a laminar flow model and an RNG turbulent flow model. Simulation results show the expansion of a high temperature region close to the torch nozzle exit, corresponding to a bright region observed in experiments.

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Abbreviations

C p :

Specific heat at constant pressure (J kg−1K−1)

E :

Electric field (V m−1)

T :

Temperature (K)

W :

Power (W)

I :

Current (A)

Q :

Gas flow rate (kg s−1)

k :

Turbulent kinetic energy (m2 s−2)

ε :

Dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy (m2 s−3)

ε r :

Net emission coefficient (W m−3sr−1)

κ :

Thermal conductivity (W m−1K−1)

μ :

Dynamic viscosity (kg m−1s−1)

μ t :

Turbulent viscosity (kg m−1s−1)

μ eff :

Effective viscosity (kg m−1s−1)

σ :

Electrical conductivity (S m−1)

ρ :

Density (kg m−3)

ϕ :

Electric potential (V)

LTE:

Local thermodynamic equilibrium

RNG:

Renormalization group methods

MHD:

Magnetohydrodynamic model

NEC:

Net emission coefficient

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Prof. Ren-zhong Huang from the Department of New Materials of Guangzhou Non-Ferrous Metal Research Institute for his selfless help with the computer programming. This work was supported by the Natural Key R&D Program of China (Basic Research Project, Grant No. 2017YFB0306104), the Ph.D. Short-term Academic Visiting Program of Graduate School of Xi’an Jiaotong University and National Ph.D. Degree Program of the China Scholarship Council.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, 710049, Shaanxi, China

    Sen-Hui Liu, Shan-Lin Zhang, Cheng-Xin Li & Chang-Jiu Li

  2. Zhenhuo Plasma Technology Co., Ltd, Chendu, 610065, Si Chuan, China

    Lu Li & Jia-Hua Huang

  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, 01854, USA

    Sen-Hui Liu & Juan Pablo Trelles

  4. CSIRO Manufacturing, PO Box 218, Lindfield, NSW, 2070, Australia

    Anthony B. Murphy

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  1. Sen-Hui Liu
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Correspondence to Cheng-Xin Li.

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Liu, SH., Zhang, SL., Li, CX. et al. Generation of Long Laminar Plasma Jets: Experimental and Numerical Analyses. Plasma Chem Plasma Process 39, 377–394 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11090-018-9949-4

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