Skip to main content
. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Apr 18.
Published in final edited form as: Plasma Med. 2016;6(2):135–177. doi: 10.1615/PlasmaMed.2016018618

Table 2. A summary of the main plasma discharge methods.

Method Characteristics Advantages Disadvantages
Gliding arc discharge A gas/water mixture flows between two diverging electrodes Improved sequestration of volatile reactants such as H2O2; continuous flow Low liquid flow; more complex system; difficult to scale
Dielectric barrier discharge Plasma discharges from an internal electrode through a porous dielectric barrier and into a gas/water mix Exposes liquid to reactive species more effectively than point/plane-to-plane approaches; can be continuous flow; some scale-up potential More complicated apparatus; higher power usage; lower liquid flow
Surface-water point-to-plane Pointed electrode at high voltage above solution with a grounded plane electrode in solution Simpler system that does not require as much power as direct discharges; easy to generate plasma; air as an electrode insulator Plasma generated species only have contact with the surface of the solution; difficult to scale
Direct discharge without feed gas injection Usually point-to-plane, with a vapor layer (formed at a certain voltage) coating electrode Less complex system; feed gas or special electrodes not required; plasma-generated species have direct contact with solution Joule heating required to produce vapor around electrodes for discharge facilitation; heavy electrode wear
Direct discharge with feed gas injection Usually point-to-plane with special electrodes at high voltage that release gas to facilitate plasma Bubbles enable better tuning of chemistry via feed gas and enhance diffusion of plasma into solution; Joule heating not required to induce vapor around electrode; can be modified into a continuous flow system Extensive electrode wear; possible quenching of plasma from liquid