Plasma is used as a flow visualization method to display the gas flow of a plasma jet. Using this method, it is found that a discharge in a plasma jet promotes the transition of the gas flow to turbulence. A discharge at intermediate frequency (∼6 kHz in this paper) has a stronger influence on the gas flow than that at lower or higher frequencies. Also, a higher discharge voltage enhances the transition of the gas flow to turbulence. Analysis reveals that pressure modulation induced both by the periodically directed movement of ionized helium and Ohmic heating on the gas flow plays an important role in inducing the transition of the helium flow regime. In addition, since the modulations induced by the high- and low-frequency discharges are determined by the frequency-selective effect, only intermediate-frequency (∼6 kHz) discharges effectively cause the helium flow transition from the laminar to the turbulent flow. Moreover, a discharge with a higher applied voltage makes a stronger impact on the helium flow because it generates stronger modulations. These conclusions are useful in designing cold plasma jets and plasma torches. Moreover, the relationship between the discharge parameters and the gas flow dynamics is a useful reference on active flow control with plasma actuators.

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In order to maximize the O concentration generated by the atmospheric pressure plasma jets (APPJs), several different methods of adding O2 additive to working gas have been proposed. However, it is not clear, which method is capable of generating the highest concentration of O atom. In this paper, the concentration of O atoms in an APPJs by adding O2 to (1) the working gas, to (2) the downstream inside the tube, and (3) to the shielding gas is investigated by two-photon absorption laser-induced fluorescence spectrometry. The results clearly demonstrate that the highest O density is achieved when 1.5% of O2 is added to the working gas rather than the other two methods. In other words, the most effective way to generate O atoms is by premixing O2 with the working gas. Further investigation suggests that O atoms are mainly generated around the electrode region, where the electric field is highest. In addition, when O2 is added to the working gas, if in the meantime extra O2 is added to the downstream inside the tube, a significant decrease of O density is observed.

In this work, to better understand the propagation mechanism of plasma bullets in capillary tubes, the propagation of plasma stream in a special designed U-shape tube is investigated. First, it’s observed that the smaller the distance d between the bended tubes is, the shorter the total length of the plasma stream is. Second, when d is reduced to 1 mm, the plasma stream in the lower part of the tube propagates along the upper inner surface of the tube rather than propagating in the whole tube uniformly. Third, high-speed photographs show that the plasma bullet starts to accelerate as soon as the secondary discharge is ignited, and propagating along the upper inner surface of the lower part of the tube. Such behavior is totally different with the propagation of plasma streams in straight tube. According to these results, we can conclude that the surface discharge plays an important role in the propagation of the plasma bullet and the conductivity of the plasma channel is relatively low, which is important for understanding the plasma bullet behavior.