Modelling the electric field in reactors yielding cold atmospheric-pressure plasma jets

Area of Science:

• Plasma Physics
• Applied Electromagnetics
• Fluid Dynamics

Background:

• Electric field behavior in Cold Atmospheric-Pressure Plasma (CAPP) jets is critical for understanding plasma characteristics and applications.
• Standard plasma reactor systems often involve complex electric field distributions that require accurate computational methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analytically compute the electric field within a standard plasma reactor system for one- and two-electrode configurations.
• To develop a robust theoretical framework for electric field analysis in CAPP jets without space charge considerations.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing cylindrical geometry and adapting classical Maxwell's potential theory.
• Solving Laplace's equations with appropriate boundary conditions and limiting conduct at the nozzle exit.
• Deriving closed-form expressions for electrostatic fields using infinite series expansions of cylindrical harmonic eigenfunctions.

Main Results:

• Developed a fully three-dimensional analytical model for electric field computation in CAPP jets.
• Successfully derived closed-form expressions for electrostatic fields in both one- and two-electrode configurations.
• Demonstrated the method's feasibility through numerical implementation and benchmarking against reported results.

Conclusions:

• The analytical technique accurately captures essential physics and features of electric fields in CAPP jets.
• The derived closed-form expressions provide a valuable tool for analyzing plasma reactor systems.
• The study validates the theoretical approach and discusses potential future research directions.