Is it possible to glow-discharge air at atmospheric pressure?

[leviterande]

Hi,

I know air can be made ionized and glow at low atmospehres like in vacuum tubes at high voltages. But is it possible to somehow make a glow discharge(not corona discharge out of leaking sharp edges) at atmospheric pressures?. Except of Ionization radiation- I haven't heared or read of this,? If it is possible what would do it? very HV van de graafs only produce gigantic spark discharges so simple hv direct current can never do it I guess. HV HF transformers also produce mostly spark discharges but a very tiny glow I suspect(?). Could in theory, HV at sufficient high frequency in the radio range at sufficient energy produce a glow discharge or what would happen??

Thanks

 

[Simon Bridge]

You seem to be asking if it is possible for any situation except for those very situations where it is possible.
A google for "glow discharge in air" yields a lot of possibles ...

This may be close to what you are looking for:
DC glow discharges in atmospheric pressure air
... Zdenko Machala et al, Journal of Advanced Oxidation Technologies

 

[NascentOxygen]

Yachting people speak of Saint Elmo's fire.

 

[Simon Bridge]

Yachting people speak of Saint Elmo's fire.

St. Elmo's fire (also St. Elmo's light[1][2]) is a weather phenomenon in which luminous plasma is created by a coronal discharge from a sharp or pointed object in a strong electric field in the atmosphere (such as those generated by thunderstorms or created by a volcanic eruption).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Elmo's_fire​

...not corona discharge out of ... sharp edges...

That's what I thought of too - however, OP has excluded it from consideration.

 

[alphy]

for your question. Yes, it is possible to create a glow discharge in air at atmospheric pressure. This process is known as atmospheric pressure glow discharge (APGD) and it has been studied extensively in recent years. APGD is created by applying a high voltage to a gas, such as air, at atmospheric pressure. This causes the gas molecules to become ionized and emit light, creating the glow effect.

There are several methods to create APGD, including using high voltage direct current (DC) sources, high frequency (HF) sources, and pulsed power sources. The type of discharge produced depends on the parameters of the applied voltage, such as frequency, amplitude, and waveform. For example, with a high frequency source, a stable glow discharge can be achieved, while a pulsed power source can produce a pulsed glow discharge.

In terms of applications, APGD has been used in fields such as material processing, surface modification, and environmental remediation. It has also been studied for its potential in gas sensing and plasma medicine.

In summary, it is indeed possible to create a glow discharge in air at atmospheric pressure, and this phenomenon has been extensively studied and utilized in various fields. Further research is still being conducted to better understand the mechanisms and potential applications of APGD.