A polyphase power supply and peristaltic flow accelerator using a One Atmosphere Uniform Glow Discharge Plasma (OAUGDPT̳M)

A surface layer of One Atmosphere Uniform Glow Discharge Plasma (OAUGDP™) was generated by parallel strip electrodes on a flat panel using a polyphase power supply system. Each electrode is energized by one of eight phases, and the phase of each electrode is increased or decreased with respect to its neighbors by a phase angle controlled by a Lab View DAQ device. The phase angle between adjacent electrodes was normally 45°, the operating frequency was in the range from 0.5 kHz to 6 kHz, and the maximum output voltage was 6-7 kVrms. The DAQ device was designed to generate up to 8 channels of analog output. The polyphase power supply system was engineered to eliminate RPI and instabilities, and to maintain a steady state voltage output on each phase. Various methods using high voltage diodes were introduced for DC and AC operation to improve the stability of the power supply system. Peristaltic acceleration of the neutral gas above the panel was demonstrated. One may go to the website http://plasma.ece.utk.edu/ and click on the video clips to see a demonstration of peristaltic flow acceleration. The general features of the peristaltically-induced flow were consistent with theoretical predictions. Digital images of the peristaltic flow show that there exist unsteady flow regions that may reduce the peristaltic velocity. The peristaltically-induced neutral gas velocity in these early, low voltage experiments was measured to be 3-6 m/sec.