Although the high-intensity, free-burning argon arc has been the object of many studies, modeling of the entire arc has been precluded because of complexities due to the interaction of electric, magnetic, fluid dynamic, and thermal effects, and the associated lack of realistic boundary conditions, in particular, close to the cathode. For establishing the most crucial boundary condition, which is the current density in the vicinity of the cathode, the maximum current density has been determined experimentally by measuring the size of the molten cathode tip (thoriated tungsten) for a given arc current. Calculated temperature profiles for a 100- and 200- A atmospheric pressure argon arc (electrode gap of 1 cm) are in good agreement with spectrometric measurements based on absolute line and continuum intensities. The arc current and arc current distribution are not only responsible for the temperature distribution in the arc, but also for the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) pumping action in the cathode region, i.e., the arc behavior is mainly controlled by the current. In contrast to the sensitivity of the current density boundary condition on the results, the calculations show that variations of the boundary condition for the flow field are insignificant.

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This paper is concerned with experimental and analytical/numerical studies of the anode region of an atmospheric pressure argon arc in a current range from 100 to 300 A. The arc arrangement allows unobstructed viewing of the entire anode region, including the anode itself, and it is also suitable for simulating short as well as long arcs. Depending on the flow situation in the anode region, two different types of stable arc roots are observed. The diffuse anode arc root, characterized by a strong flow impinging on the anode surface, is well known from free-burning, short arcs. The second type reveals a more or less vevere constriction in front of the anode, caused by the entrainment of gas into the arc, resulting in an anode jet. Measurements of the induced flow at the cathode of such an arc show a linear increase of the induced mass flow rate with increasing current. This correlation can be confirmed by a simple analysis. A fast-scanning, computer-controlled system has been used for spectrometric measurements of the temperature distribution for both modes of anode arc roots, assuming local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) in the arc. The maximum temperatures in the arc core compare favorably with calculated temperature distributions of the constricted mode. The calculated isotherms, however, show a substantial shift which is probably due to the chosen boundary conditions at the end of the constrictor tube.

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