Abstract
The behavior of a free-burning argon arc including the cathode region is investigated from a theoretical perspective. Two-dimensional differential equations describing the conservation of mass, momentum, energy, and electrical current density are solved together with Ohm's law and Maxwell's equation for the magnetic field in a cylindrical coordinate system using an iterative finite volume method. Recent data of the radiative losses from an argon plasma in the form of net emission coefficients are used. Simulations are made at various electrical currents for different electrode gaps. Predicted isotherms of the arc are in fair agreement with existing experimental results. Particularly, reasonable profiles of current density at a plane beneath the cathode tip are predicted, even though nonequilibrium behavior in the cathode sheath is neglected. Comparisons of the present current density profile with reported results are made. In addition, the effect of the length scale required in the use of net emission coefficients to model the radiative characteristics of the arc is studied.
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