Download Computer simulation of Plasma Spark Plug firing circuit

Computer simulation of
Plasma Spark Plug firing
circuit
By Bilesh Ladva
In the lab of Professor Szymon
Suckewer
What is a Plasma Spark Plug
(PSP)?
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Composed of three different electrodes
surrounding a central electrode.
Plasma is produced between a pair of
electrodes.
Accelerated along electrodes by
(Lorentz) forces.
Picture of PSP
Why is a Plasma Spark plug
useful?
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Useful for more efficient fuel
combustion.
The plasma created between electrodes
is generally much larger than
conventional electric spark plugs
This means there is a greater surface
area to ignite the fuel.
Practical uses of PSP
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The main potential use of PSP is in
aeroplane engines.
The use of PSPs will greatly reduce the
volume of fuel wasted.
This in turn will lower the greenhouse
gas production and the overall carbon
footprint.
Outline of the project
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The project was split into three main
parts:
A one week introductory course in
Plasma Physics.
Time spent working with the PSP and
the firing circuit directly
Modeling the firing circuit ( the main
part)
Modeling the firing circuit
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The program used was called
Pspice/Cadence. It was very userfriendly.
The practical experience with the circuit
was helpful in designing experiments to
measure certain parameters of the
circuit.
Obstacles faced during
modeling
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The Transformer: a
crucial element in the
circuit, designed to
produce high voltages
required for Plasma
formation. The
computer program
could not cope with the
extreme conditions the
transformer was being
used under and could
not model it correctly
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The Timer (of the firing
of pulses) circuit: this
was created entirely in
the lab and did not exist
in the Pspice/Cadence
database. Therefore, it
needed to be built basic
components.
Current status of the project
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The project is currently in its initial
testing phase.
Although, additional improvements may
still be needed on the Transformer in
order to make the simulation realistic.
Future of the project
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Creating a successful model will allow
several aspects to be investigated.
In addition, it will identify key problems
within the circuit( such as anomalous
current and voltage readings).
Finally, it should greatly speed up the
testing process to produce faster
results.