Increased Flame Reactivity of a Lean Premixed Flame Through the Use of a Custom-Built High-Voltage Pulsed Plasma Source

High-voltage (HV) nonthermal pulsed plasma sources at atmospheric pressure are currently studied for combustion enhancement applications. The sub-microsecond electrical discharges produce reactive species that reduce the global activation energy of the combustion processes and increase the flame propagation speed while limiting gas heating. Current pulses of duration <;100 ns are produced through the discharge of a capacitor-charging HV dc power supply. Time-integrated intensified charge-coupled device images, filtered at 430 nm, of a lean premixed CH₄/air laminar flame under the influence of pulsed HV electrical discharges are presented as clear evidence of plasma-assisted combustion.