EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF ATMOSPHERIC-PRESSURE NONEQUILIBRIUM PLASMA CHEMISTRY

Atmospheric pressure plasmas are frequently considered to be in local thermodynamic equilibrium due to the high frequency of collisional pro cesses which drive the plasma state toward a Maxwell-Boltzmann equilib rium. However, various forms of thermodynamic, ionizational, and chemi cal nonequilibrium have been demonstrated and investigated in atmosphe ric pressure plasma environments over the last several years, and the nonequilibrium behavior of such systems can be quite significant, The investigation, understanding, and exploitation of atmospheric pressure nonequilibrium plasma chemistry is necessary to the further expansion of plasma-based systems into mainstream manufacturing and processing applications. Several experimental programs to investigate the fundame ntal processes of atmospheric pressure nonequilibrium plasma chemistry and the application of this nonequilibrium to various chemical system s have been undertaken in our laboratories. The results of these inves tigations have shed light on the kinetics behind various forms of atmo spheric pressure nonequilibrium chemistry, and have provided insights into the beneficial control of nonequilibrium plasma chemistry for pro cessing applications.