Numerical study on influences of barrier arrangements on dielectric barrier discharge characteristics

A numerical study has been carried out to understand the influences of barrier arrangements on the discharge characteristics of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD). A 1.5-dimensional (1.5-D) modeling is considered in the arrangements of bare, single-barrier, and double barrier electrodes while a two-dimensional (2-D) approach is employed in a configuration of ferroelectric packed discharge (FPD). Numerical simulations show that the evolution of microdischarges in DBD occurs sequentially in the three distinctive phases of avalanche, streamer, and decay, and that the dielectric barriers make streamer discharges stabilized and sustained in lowered electric fields without transition to spark compared with no barrier case. Especially, the highly nonuniform strong electric field effect created by the pellets appears to be formed in FPD, which enables the flue gas cleaning to be expected to enhance the decomposition efficiency.