Effect of the pressure on the properties of an impulse arc in CO2

A. Robledo-Martinez1, H. Sobral2 and A. Ruiz-Meza1

1

Dept. Energa, Universidad Autnoma Metropolitana, Av. San Pablo 180, Centro de Ciencias Aplicadas y Desarrollo Tecnolgico, Universidad Nacional

Azcapotzalco, 02200 Mexico City, Mexico.

2

Autnoma de Mxico, Cd. Universitaria, Coyoacn, 04510 Mexico City, Mexico. E-mail: arm@correo.azc.uam.mx

Abstract The properties of an arc produced by fast impulses in a carbon dioxide (CO2) atmosphere were investigated. A time-resolved spectroscopy technique consisting of a spectograph coupled to a fast camera was implemented to analyze the light emitted by the arc. Using this technique the arcs spectrum could be obtained at different moments of the development of the discharge. The use of a multi-element Saha-Boltzmann method allowed to obtain both the temperature T and the electron density ne of the arc. These were found to have peak values of T=28,000 K and ne ~ 91017 cm-3 at the time the current is peaking. The measured temperatures were incorporated into a variation of the Spitzer model to obtain the plasma resistivity. With it the arc resistances were calculated and found to be consistent with the measured currents (~ 1.85 kA). Mass spectroscopy sampling of the spent gas shows that CO2 degraded very little after several dozen kiloampere shots.

1. Introduction In the second half of last century carbon dioxide (CO2) was considered a viable candidate for gaseous insulation but industry never adopted it mostly because its breakdown strength is not outstanding. However the forecasted demise of SF6 as a gaseous dielectric on environmental considerations has renewed the interest in CO2 as a dielectric be it on its own [1, 2] or in binary mixtures [3]. CO2 is important not only for applications on earth but also to understand the dynamics of the atmosphere of other bodies in our solar system. Discharge phenomena has been recently observed or predicted in Venus and Mars. Both planets have an atmosphere that is predominantly made of CO2 (~95%). Last year the probe Venus Express detected lightning activity in the atmosphere of Venus [4]. A few scientists have also speculated on the possibility of electrostatic discharges developing in the thin Martian atmosphere. The agent causing the discharge is thought to be static electrification from sandstorms [5]. A better understanding of the breakdown mechanisms of CO2 can improve the present knowledge of the physics of lightning in those bodies as well in the earths primitive atmosphere [6].

2. Plasma temperature and resistivity

2.1 Multi-element Saha- Boltzmann method. Boltzmann and multi-element Saha Boltzmann plots are used in the present work to determine the evolution of the electron temperature in plasmas assumed to be in local thermodynamic equilibrium [7, 8]. The second method has the advantage of using transitions corresponding to different ionic degrees and species simultaneously. Disregarding higher ionic species (z<2), the Saha-Boltzmann plot can be written in a similar way to the standard Boltzmann expression as:
I z, 1 z * Ln j = E + Ln( hcN ) Ag kT j , j j
*

(1)

where I z, and E z, correspond to the line emission intensity and the upper energy level j j of a transition for an element with upper energy level j and ionization degree z (z=0 and

z=1 correspond to the neutral and single ionized atoms, respectively), is the transition
wavelength, A is the transition probability, g is the degeneracy of the level, k the Boltzmann constant, T the electron temperature, h the Plank constant, and c the speed of light. The superindex * indicates that the expression must be modified as follows:
*

3/ 2 3/ 2 I z, Iz 1 j = Ln j , zLn 2 2mk T Ln C 0 Ln 2 10 100 Q (T )(1 + S ) Ag Ag ne h j j j j

(2)

and
E z, j
* 0 = E z, + zE , j

(3)

with m the electron mass, ne the electron density, C is the elemental concentration of
0 0 the gas, Q (T ) is the partition function of the neutral atoms, E , is the ionization 10 energy of the element and S is the ratio of the ionic to neutral atom number densities.

On the other hand, the electron density can be easily derived from the Stark broadening of the lines which also depend on the temperature T [9]. It is thus possible to determine both parameters simultaneously using an interactive process that rapidly converges, starting with representative values such as 20,000 K for the temperature and 1017 cm-3 for the electron density.

2.2 Spitzer resistivity In a recent investigation by the authors [7] it was found that the electrical resistance of the arc in air can be satisfactorily modeled with the Spitzer theory. According to this model, the plasma resistivity is given by [10, 11]:

5.2 10 5 z log T 3/ 2

[m]

(4)

where T is the electronic temperature (in eV) and log 15 is the Coulomb logarithm. z is in turn given by Sahas equation [12]:

(2me kT )3 / 2 2 g i =
n0 h
3

g0

eEi exp kT

(5)

where Ei is the ionization potential, gi and g0 are the statistical weights of the ground state of the ion and neutral atom, respectively, n0 is gas density and e is the electrons charge. Using experimentally measured temperatures it is straightforward matter to calculate the plasma resistivity using Eq. (4). With it and the values of arc diameters the resistance can be easily obtained. In the present work we put the Spitzer model to a test (see Section 5) to find whether it can be as successful with CO2 as it was with air.

3. Experimental set-up

The experiments were carried out in a 2 m3 steel chamber, 1.6 m high and 1.2 m in diameter, that could be operated in both high-vacuum or hyperbaric mode. The chamber was coupled to a 5-stage Marx generator that produced negative pulses with peak amplitude of -270 kV. The electrodes used for the discharge were: 30 conical point and aluminum plane 1.2 m in diameter. The gap separation employed for the tests was kept fixed at 11 cm. The plane electrode was fitted with a Rogowski coil to measure the current and a field probe of the D-dot type to measure the electric field produced by the discharge. For the tests the chamber was filled with high-purity carbon dioxide (99.995% purity) to the pressure level required. This varied in steps from 400 Torr (53.3 kPa) to 1200 torr (159.8 kPa). The gas was only renovated at the end of each series of tests that comprised several dozen shots. In order to obtain spectra useful for estimation of the evolution of the electron temperature and density, the light emitted by the arc was collected using a 7.5 cm diameter plano-convex lens and then guided through a 400-m fiber optics to a CzernyTurner spectrometer (Spex 370M) having a focal length of 370 mm. This was physically coupled to a fast camera. The diffraction grating employed in all the experiments was 2,400 g/mm which with the present set-up gives a spectral window of about 21 nm (depending on the central wavelength chosen). The camera (Hamamatsu C2830) could

operate both in streak and frame modes; for the present work it operated in the latter mode in order to maximize the amount of light gathered by the detection system as the fine grating employed reduced substantially the incoming light. The instant of time when the frame was taken and the exposure (gate) time were controlled by means of a delay generator (SRS DG535). The pulse detected by the field probe following the application of the impulse was used to trigger the DG535 (and thus the fast camera). In a typical experiment: a) the central wavelength would be selected, b) a delay and a gate times would be dialed into the DG535, c) on reception of the trigger a spectrum would be acquired and, d) the procedure would be repeated at a different wavelength. This method is aimed at providing a panorama of the emission at different times and different wavelengths. Each individual spectrum was taken at separate shots. The reduced amount of light emerging from the spectrograph precluded the use of the streak mode that could have given the time evolution of the discharges spectrum (within the spectral window) in a single shot. From the spectra obtained the electronic temperature and density was obtained (see Section 5). The most intense isolated transitions used to determine the temperature and the electron density were: 7115.2 and 8335.1 corresponding to C I; 7119.9, 7231.3 and 7236.4 from C II; 7156.7, 7480.7, 7771.9, 7947.5 and 8221.8 to O I. The required equation parameters were taken from: [9, 13, and 14]. In some of the tests a residual gas mass analyzer system was implemented to monitor the degradation of the gas caused by the discharges. The system consisted of a pressure-reduction cascade to reduce the pressure of the sampled gas to a level adequate for the operation of the analyzer (Stanford Research RMA200). The cascade consisted of a long stainless-steel capillary (100 m diameter), a pinhole and two vacuum pumps. With this setup a pressure of the order of 510-5 mbar was maintained under continuous operation at the analyzer. The gas sample was extracted from the side of the chamber through a valve and samples were taken at the beginning of a series of tests and at the end. The accuracy of the analyzer employed was 0.1 atomic-mass units (amu).

4. Experimental results

In order to study the physical properties of the discharge, time-resolved spectroscopy measurements of the arcs temperature were obtained using the method presented in subsection 2.1. These were measured at the peak of the current trace (t=1.3 s) and then at selected instants of time afterwards. The results obtained for 3 different pressures are shown in Fig. 1. The graph shows that the temperatures attain a maximum value of 26,000-28,000 K at t=1.3 s and the decrease quickly afterwards in such a way that, for example, by t=10 s the temperature has dropped to almost one half of the initial value. It is also evident from the graphs that up to 7 s the decrement is almost linear with time and after that time the speed of variation slows down a bit.
30
400 Torr 760 Torr 1200 Torr

Temperature (x103 K)

25

20

15

10

12

14

16

Time (s)

Figure 1. Time-resolved measurement of the arc temperature at different pressures.

For a limited number of shots the peak current was increased from the usual 1.8 to 2.2 kA using a gas pressure of 760 Torr. The increment in the current intensity was achieved by modifying the generators front resistance. The figure shows that there is a clear increment in the temperature in this case: more than 10% at t=1.3 s and 39% at 10 s as a consequence of the extra power fed to the arc by the increased current.

35
1.8 kA 2.2 kA

30

Temperature (x103 K)

25

20

15

10 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

Time (s)

Figure 2. Evolution of the electron temperature obtained at two different peak currents.

Filling pressure: 760 Torr.

14

Electron density (x1017 cm-3)

12 10 8 6 4 2 0 2 4 6 8

400Torr 760Torr 1200Torr 200Torr

10

12

14

16

Time (s)

Figure 3. Time-evolution of the electron-density for different gas pressures.

As mentioned in sub-section 2.1, the electron density of the discharge was obtained from line-broadening in the experimental spectra. The densities obtained as a function of gas pressure and time are shown in Fig. 3 for the pressure range 400-1200 Torr. Also included in the graph is a lone point from a single test carried out under a 200 Torr pressure (it was not possible to get more measurements at this pressure as the feedthrough between the chamber and the Marx flashed over due to the low gas density). The electron density is maximum at t=1.3 s, when the current reaches its peak. Afterwards the

density decays with time at a fast pace. The graph shows that the electron density is proportional to the filling pressure; at fixed time t=1.3 s for example, the density is 61017 cm-3 for p=400 Torr whereas for p=760 it increases by a factor of 1.7 and for p=1200 Torr the density is 2.2 times larger than that of 400 Torr.

3.0x10

-7

0 shots 41 shots

Partial pressure (Torr)

2.0x10

-7

CO

CO2

1.0x10

-7

H2O

0.0 10 20 30

O2 40 50

Mass (amu)

Figure 4. Mass spectrum for 2 samples: one of fresh gas and another one of the same gas

after 41 shots. Filling pressure: 400 Torr. In order to investigate the possible degradation of the gas under repeated arcing, several mass spectra were taken in the range 1-200 amu. Figure 4 shows one example of a spectrum obtained at a gas pressure of 400 Torr. The spectra shown correspond one to a sample of virgin gas (before discharging) and the other to a sample taken after 41 shots. The peaks of the predominant species were identified to be CO, O and CO2. The peak at 18 amu corresponds to water vapor adsorbed in the walls of the capillary tube (it was very difficult to get rid of it). The figure shows that after 41 shots there is very little degradation of the gas. If the gas is to be used as an insulator, it is showing good resiliency. The CO peak observed in the untreated gas sample is due to dissociation produced by the accelerated electrons in the RMAs ionizer. Assuming that the rate of production of CO by dissociation at the ionizer is constant, Fig. 4 shows that there is a small increment in the concentration of CO (from 1.310-7 to 1.510-7 Torr) from dissociation

of the CO2 molecule; this increment is reciprocated in a small rise in the concentration of monatomic and molecular oxygen.

5. Discussion

The Spitzer resistivity of the plasma was calculated using Eqs. (4) and (5) and the experimental values of the temperature of the arc. With it and the dimensions of the arc column the resistance of the arc channel could be calculated. The arc diameter was obtained from fast frame photography. The measured diameters varied from 3 to 7 mm, depending on the pressure and the time delay after breakdown. The arc resistances obtained are shown in Fig. 5. Every point in the graph is the average of 3 measurements. The graph shows that there is a very little difference between the resistances obtained for the pressures 400 and 760 Torr throughout the time interval investigated. For p=1200 Torr there is initially a clear difference with the other two pressures but after 5.3 s the three curves merge. The initial difference in resistance is a consequence of the effect of the pressure on the arc diameter at early times.

400 Torr 760 Torr 1200 Torr

10

Resistance ()
1 0 2 4 6 8 10

Time (s)

Figure 5. Arc resistance as a function of time for 3 different pressures.

Table I shows the peak current calculated from the data in Fig. 5 combined with the value of the generators front resistance and its peak voltage. Also shown in the table are the corresponding peak currents measured experimentally. The table shows that the

calculated and measured values agree very well except for p=400 Torr where the difference between them increases to 5.7%. This demonstrates that the simple Spitzer model is adequate for impulse discharges.
TABLE I Peak current (in kA) at different pressures p=400 Torr p=760 Torr p=1200 Torr Calculated 1.76 1.76 1.89 Measured 1.86 1.75 1.87

The mass spectroscopy results shown in Fig. 4 demonstrate that CO2 degrades very little after dozens of shots. This is good news if it is to be used as an insulating gas, especially in the hostile environment of a circuit breaker. This reduced degradation could be also explained by the fact that such a large volume of gas needs more shots or, alternatively, more powerful impulses to degrade. It could also be the case that some of the unstable species get annihilated in the passage through the long, narrow, capillary tube. The sample in Figure 4 received a total of 111 kJ of energy stored in the generator; a quick calculation shows that the yield of CO production in this case was 1.161013 molecules/J.
6. Conclusions

The measurement of the arcs temperature obtained from time-resolved spectroscopy show that its temperature reaches a maximum at t ~ 1 s when the current reaches its maximum. The temperature then decreases afterwards as the current descends. The fact that the temperature is controlled by ohmic heating becomes evident when the current is increased by a factor of 1.17 and the temperatures increase by 10 to 39 %. The electron density is also a maximum when the current peaks an was found to be directly proportional to the filling pressure. The measured temperatures allowed the plasma resistivity to be estimated using the simple Spitzer resistivity. The resistivity was used to calculate the arc resistance which was then fed back to estimate the peak current. The results obtained compare favorably (no more than 5.7% difference) with the measured peak currents. This proves that the

simple Spitzer model is adequate for impulse experiments like the one reported in this work. As shown in Fig. 4, CO2 degrades very little after the application of 111 kJ of stored energy. This could be attributed to the fact that under the experimental conditions here employed there was not enough power available to degrade the gas substantially. The yield of CO production obtained: 1.161013 molecules/J is 2 orders of magnitude below that found in geophysical environments [6].

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Mexican Science Council (CONACyT) and DGAPA-UNAM. Two of us (A. Robledo-Martinez and H. Sobral) are fellows of Sistema Nacional de Investigadores.

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