Ozone generation using pulse source with lightning waveform

Abstract

Recently, interest in production of ozone has grown rapidly in wide range of applications especially in industrial sector including oxidation, sterilization, bleaching processes and others. In nature, ozone is formed by the sun's ultraviolet rays and high energy electrical discharges during lightning storms. It is said that in each lightning strike, hundreds of tons of ozone had been generated in the atmosphere. Therefore, in this study experimental setup has been conducted to explore the potential possess by the lightning phenomena in generating huge amount of ozone in a repetitive strike. Lightning waveshape (1.2/50 µs) has been developed by single stage impulse voltage generator. This pulse is then applied through the reactor to produce the ozone. As a results, ozone does not form because ozone requires very fast pulse duration. So, the first study of ozone generation with lightning waveform in microsecond is not sufficient to produce ozone unless very high voltage is required. In addition, the parameter of the air flow rate and peak input voltage give effects on ozone concentration.