Session OWP4 - Poster Session: Innovative Plasma Applications.
POSTER session, Wednesday afternoon, October 21
Haku/Pikake Room, Aston Wailea
Martian atmospheric gas processed by a radio frequency discharge result in a mixture of oxygen, carbon monoxide, residual carbon dioxide, and other minor components. Recombination of oxygen and carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide is slow enough to allow the extraction of oxygen downstream of the radio frequency discharge reactor. In a series of experiments we verified these data, based on a simplified model where a limited number of elementary processes was included. We also compared the efficiency of inductive and capacitive discharges in the same density, temperature and power ranges. Relationship between the average reduced electric field and discharge gap in capacitive discharge was established. Sharp maximum in oxygen flux observed in our earlier experiments \footnote Z. Shi, D. Wu, and R. L. Ash, SAE Paper 961598 (1996). was used to determine the optimum operating conditions. The experiments confirm the extensive dissociation of carbon dioxide, in spite of being performed in a limited range of the average reduced electric field.