A mixed type boundary–value problem related to the electrostatics of cold plasma jet reactors based on dielectric barrier discharge

Abstract

A semi-analytical model is presented for the determination of the electric field in reactors used for cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAPP) jet production, based on the concept of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD). These systems are associated with various applications in contemporary engineering, ranging from material processing to biomedicine, and at the same time they provide many challenges for fundamental research. Here, we consider a simplified system configuration of a single driven electrode, surrounding a thin dielectric tube, which does not contribute to the electric field, since the potential variation is immediate due to its negligible size. By employing the cylindrical coordinate system that perfectly fits the present plasma jet reactor, we separate the area of electric activity into three distinct domains according to the imposed external conditions, while our analysis is restricted to the electrostatic limit of Maxwell’s equations. To this end, cylindrical harmonic field expansions are used for the potential, which produce the corresponding electric fields in each subdomain. Due to the imposed mixed-type boundary value problem, additional linear terms are incorporated, leading to three possible analytical solutions of the physical problem under consideration. The efficiency of the method is demonstrated by comparing the final formulae with a numerical solution, followed by the relevant discussion.

Keywords

• dbd
• cold plasma jet
• reactor
• mixed-type boundary-value problem
• electrostatic potential theory