The Synthesis of Novel Materials via Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma Reactors

This work describes recent ARL research on the production of novel materials via several prototype atmospheric dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma reactors. A bottom-up approach was exploited to synthesize novel carbon-containing deposits via plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition. Issues regarding local variations in morphology, uniformity and thickness were identified and correlated to reactor configuration and design. A top-down approach was recently investigated to produce aluminum nanoparticles (nAl). Commercial nAl were plasma-treated to reduce the native oxide shell, followed by mixing in an iodic solution (HIO$_{\mathrm{3}})$ to coat the nAl with an oxidizing salt, aluminum iodate hexahydrate (AIH). Preliminary results suggest that the reactor design with stronger arcing led to increased energy release from the plasma-treated nAl-AIH, presumably due to more efficient arc-induced surface modification and improved nAl-HIO$_{\mathrm{3}}$ interactions. This paper underscores the importance of recognizing not only the benefits, but also the challenges of applying plasma techniques to novel material production.