Ammonia formation in N2/H2 plasmas on ITER-relevant plasma facing materials: Surface temperature and N2 plasma content effects

Abstract

Ammonia production in N2/H2 direct current glow discharge plasmas, with nitrogen concentrations from 1.5% to 33%, different wall materials (tungsten, stainless steel and aluminium as a proxy for beryllium) and surface temperatures up to 350°C has been investigated. Ammonia yields on the exposed materials have been deduced, resulting in different values depending on the wall material, its temperature and N2 plasma content. The results indicate weak wall temperature dependence in tungsten and stainless steel. However, wall temperatures above 300°C have a very clear influence on aluminium walls, as almost all the molecular N2 depleted from the gas phase is converted into ammonia. The amount of implanted N seems to have a direct impact on the ammonia formation yield, pointing to the competition between N implantation and N/H–N/N recombination on the walls as the key mechanism of the ammonia formation.