Characteristics of emissive spectrum and the removal of nitric oxide in N2/O2/NO plasma with argon additive

Although the approach using non-thermal plasma (NTP) for deNOx has been studied for over 15 years, how to achieve higher removal efficiency with lower cost is still a barrier for its industrial application. In order to investigate the impact of the argon additive on electron density, energy and nitric oxide reduction process in plasma, the spectrum of the dielectric barrier discharge at atmospheric pressure in a coaxial reactor was measured using the monochromater with high resolution. The comparative experiments for NO reduction were carried out simultaneously in N₂/O₂/NO plasma stream with and without argon, respectively. The nitrogen molecular spectrum which is attributed to the energy level transition (C³π_u → B3π^g) was compared in the wavelength range 300–480 nm and the electron density and temperature were determined based on the relative intensities and Stark broadening width of spectral lines. The spectrum results indicated that the argon additive could enhance the intensity of emissive spectrum of plasma, thus the electron concentration as well as the energy was increased, and finally prompted the ionization rate to produce active N, O and O₃. The results of NO reduction showed that NO conversion efficiency increased in the range of 10%–30% with 5% addition of argon in stream comparing with the condition without argon additive. This study will play a positive role in the industrial application of dielectric barrier discharge deNOx reactor.