Rotating Gliding Arc Codriven by Magnetic Field and Tangential Flow

The physical characteristics of a rotating gliding arc (RGA) discharge reactor, which is codriven by magnetic field and tangential flow, have been investigated by means of an oscilloscope and a high-speed camera. When air was used as the carrier gas, RGA motions in magnetic fields were recorded by a high-speed camera. A double-arc phenomenon was observed in the magnetic field with a low flux density (200 G). However, for a high flux density (1000 G), the arc did not break anymore, and the contacts between the arc and outer electrode moved along the inner wall of the outer electrode. For the study of electrical parameters of RGA plasma, N₂, air, and O₂ were used as carrier gas. The results showed that the voltage waveform of the discharge in air flow was relatively stable. When O₂ was used, the breakdown voltage and sustain voltage were both very low, and the average power applied was lower than that of the other cases.