Numerical simulation of pulsed wire discharge for nano-powder production

Pulsed wire discharge in embedded-gas is a simple and efficient method for producing nanosize powder of metal, alloy, or metal compound. The powder size and size distribution are strongly related to the deposition energy into the wire load by joule heating. This paper established a numerical model to analyze and predict the behavior of electrical circuits containing pulsed current source and exploding wire load. In the model, the entire process of wire explosion is subdivided into five stages: solid heating, melting, liquid heating, evaporation, and plasma growth. Voltage waveform, current waveform and deposition energy on the wire can be numerically simulated by the model. Based on a number of simulations, an actual exploding wire device for nano-powder production was constructed. The test voltage and current waveforms are in good agreement with the calculated results.