Experimental study of the positive leader velocity as a function of the current in the initial and final-jump phases of a spark discharge

Abstract

A positive leader in air at gap lengths of up to 8 m was studied experimentally on an open experimental stand. The voltage source was a 6-MV pulsed voltage generator or an artificial charged aerosol cloud. The dependence of the leader velocity on the current in the range 0.2–8 A was determined by simultaneously recording the optical picture and electric parameters of the discharge. Particular attention was paid to the final-jump phase of the discharge, when the gap was completely bridged by the streamer zone of the leader. It is shown that the character of the dependence of the leader velocity on the current in this phase remains unchanged; hence, the final-jump phase can be used in experiments in which the current has to be varied within a wide range. For this purpose, one can use a damping resistance, which is inefficient in the initial phase. The parameters of the power-law dependence of the leader velocity on the current at currents of a few amperes are established reliably. It is found that the power-law dependence with constant parameters is inapplicable to calculate the leader velocity at currents of about 0.1 A, which correspond to the lower limit of the leader viability.