Pulsed corona for breaking up air bubbles in water

The injection of gas into water through a hollow needle gives a stream of bubbles; these bubbles can be effectively broken up by application of high-voltage pulses. Experimental work shows that this mechanism works in demineralized water even in conducting tap water if the pulses have a short rise time. Bubble diameters down to at least 50 μm can be obtained. The pulse source uses either a high-voltage tetrode or a spark gap as switching element. Extremely small bubbles are produced at a high rate and a low power input. Applications of this method can be found in chemical process technology