a b s t r a c tDischarge characteristics and abatement of volatile organic compounds using plasma reactor packed with ceramic Raschig rings were investigated. It was found that the gap equivalent capacitance decreased with increasing voltage while the dielectric barrier equivalent capacitance increased initially and stabilized at about 700 pF. Compared with empty reactor, toluene removal was significantly enhanced by ceramic Raschig rings, 97% against 48%. With respect to the energy yield in the presence of padding, the efficiency was remarkably improved up to 10 g/kWh, which was 2 times higher than that of 5 g/kWh in the absence of padding with removal ratio exceeding 50%.Crown