On anomalous nanoparticle size evolution in glowing wire generator

Abstract

This paper deals with nanoparticle generation by a glowing wire generator (GWG). The glowing chamber has been customized enabling using either single- or double-wire attached to the electrodes. The double-wire configuration was expected to significantly extend the operation window of the GWG. The undertaken measurements of the particle size distribution revealed, however, an anomalous behaviour of the particle size evolution depending on the applied voltage. At low voltages (<1.1V), the double-wire configuration allows for a substantial particle enlargement (up to two times) as compared to the single-wire configuration, which looks promising for the development of industrial aerosol generators. However, when the voltage exceeded the above value, the opposite behaviour was detected, i.e., some decrease in the particle size for the double-wire configuration was observed. This anomalous behaviour was attributed to interplay between nucleation and coagulation in the system. The corresponding mechanisms are discussed in this paper.