Characteristics of Multiple Plasma Plumes and Formation of Bullets in an Atmospheric- Pressure Plasma Jet Array

An atmospheric-pressure plasma jet array source driven by a pulsed bipolar wave of several tens of kilohertz was designed and characterized. This source was assembled with each individual module. Thus, it is possible to adjust the area of treatment by arranging the number of jets. It has the potential to greatly enhance the scale of surface treatment over that of a single plasma jet. Multiple plasma plumes were generated and propagated to grounded-surface relatively uniformly without an auxiliary circuit. Due to the large separation between each jet, plasma bullets propagate through their individual gas channels. The transition from the bullet to the continuous modes occurred at an applied voltage of 5.5 kVpp. The interaction between adjacent plasma plumes and behaviors of primary bullet and subbullet are investigated with intensified charge coupled device camera images.