High Voltage Phenomena in Rarefied Air: A DIY Approach

Authors

  • Frank Fang Jia University of British Columbia
  • Georgiy Maruzhenko University of British Columbia

Keywords:

corona discharge, discharge requirements, electrical breakdown, paschen's law, vacuum arc

Abstract

The present experiment aims to recreate and analyze known behavior of high-voltage gaps in a near vacuum with low-cost equipment. It has been previously observed that the application of high voltages in rarified gas results in electrical breakdown and corona discharge, characterized by the production of observable plasma in the experimental area. The current study aims to identify and document a do-it-yourself (DIY) method for producing and containing electrical discharge. Further, the requirements of electrical phenomena were recorded in terms of voltage and pressure to be compared to previous models, namely Paschen’s Law, as a measure of accuracy (Berzak et al., 2006). The operating experimental apparatus was demonstrated to exhibit the same discharge phenomena as previously recorded (Peek, 1929). New models for voltage and pressure requirements for electrical breakdown and corona discharge were produced. Literature comparison was available for the voltage model of electrical breakdown, where significant difference was identified between Paschen’s model and current data. The present study may contribute further evidence to the inadequacy of Paschen’s law in describing breakdown voltages at high pressure-distance configurations. 

Author Biographies

Frank Fang Jia, University of British Columbia

Student

Georgiy Maruzhenko, University of British Columbia

Student

References

Al-Hakary, S. K., Dosky, L., & Talal, S. K. (2014). Investigation of Hot Cathode and Hollow Anode of Argon Glow Discharge Plasma. Applied Physics Research, 6(5). doi:10.5539/apr.v6n5p45

Bawagan, A. (1997). A stochastic model of gaseous dielectric breakdown. Chemical Physics Letters, 281(4-6), 325-331. doi:10.1016/s0009-2614(97)01192-5

Berzak, L.F., Dorfman, S. E., & Smith, S. P. (2006). Paschen’s law in air and noble gases.

Emeleus, K. G. (1982). Anode glows in glow discharges: outstanding problems. International Journal of Electronics, 52(5), 407-417. doi:10.1080/00207218208901448

Geissler Tubes. (2006). Retrieved March 12, 2017, from http://lrrpublic.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/lrrSecure/Sites/Web/physics_explorer/physics/lo/cathode_07/cathode_07_01.htm

Goldman, M., Goldman, A., & Sigmond, R. S. (1985). The corona discharge, its properties and specific uses. Pure and Applied Chemistry, 57(9). doi:10.1351/pac198557091353

Husain, E., & Nema, R. S. (1982). Analysis of Paschen Curves for air, N2 and SF6 Using the Townsend Breakdown Equation. IEEE Transactions on Electrical Insulation, EI-17(4), 350-353. doi:10.1109/tei.1982.298506

Li, X., Cui, X., Lu, T., Li, D., Chen, B., & Fu, Y. (2016). Influence of air pressure on the detailed characteristics of corona current pulse due to positive corona discharge. Physics of Plasmas, 23(12), 123516. doi:10.1063/1.4971804

Lisovskiy, V. A., Yakovin, S. D., & Yegorenkov, V. D. (2000). Low-pressure gas breakdown in uniform dc electric field. Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 33(21), 2722-2730. doi:10.1088/0022-3727/33/21/310

Massarczyk, R., Chu, P., Elliott, S. R., Rielage, K., Dugger, C., & Xu, W. (2015). Paschen's law studies in cold gases. Retrieved from https://arxiv.org/abs/1612.07170v1

Peek, F. W. (1929). Dielectric Phenomena in High Voltage Engineering (3rd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Book Company, inc.

Wang, J. (2013). Simulation of Gas Discharge in Tube and Paschen’s Law. Optics and Photonics Journal, 03(02), 313-317. doi:10.4236/opj.2013.32b073

Xiao, D. (2016). Gas discharge and gas insulation. Heidelberg: Springer.

Published

2017-10-13

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 2 (2017)

Section

Articles

License


Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).