EE 415 – Electrical Engineering Senior Project - Final Report “Plasmatron” Plasma Exciter

EE 415 – Electrical Engineering Senior Project - Final Report “Plasmatron” Plasma Exciter Developed in Conjunction with Advanced Energy Industries, Inc – Voorhees, NJ Project by : Joseph Eugene Palaia, IV May 13, 2002 Professor : Dr James K Beard Advisor : Mohammed Feknous New Jersey Institute of Technology - Mt Laurel, NJ Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 This report contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Table of Contents A) Definition of Project Introduction a Description b Background c Applications d Advantages and Disadvantages Objective Design Specification Project Goals a Size b Cost of Additional Development c Performance d Educational Value B) Description of Author’s Contribution Theory of Operation Schematic Circuit Diagrams Necessary Equipment Design and Construction Effort a Transformer Analysis b Description of PC Board Design Bill of Materials 10 Testing and Analysis Page 3 10 11 11 11 12 12 13 14 16 18 19 21 23 30 31 C) Results of the Project 11 Originally Proposed Project Schedule 12 Concessions to Time Limitations 13 Final Result 14 Directions on Generator Operation for Demonstration Purposes 33 33 34 35 36 D) References a Individuals/Qualifications b Published Sources 40 40 40 Appendices 1) Data Sheets 2) Additional Pictures 3) Articles This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Cover Page – 200kHz Plasma, generated by early, hand-made prototype unit at Advanced Energy, Voorhees, NJ 11/30/2000 This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 A) Definition of Project Introduction a Description The production of toxic and polluting chemicals due to the burning of fossil fuels by internal combustion engines is a matter of extreme environmental impact With the continued growth of our society, the use of the internal combustion engine is becoming more and more prevalent as the number of vehicles in use continues to increase In the US alone, 131,838,538 passenger cars were registered in 1998 Obviously, as the number of cars increases, so does the volume of toxic and polluting emissions If we are to preserve our natural environment for our children and our children’s children, then we must find a way to curb this stream of pollutants An early step has been taken in the state of California, which has recently announced new state regulations which will greatly reduce the acceptable levels of vehicle pollution Under California’s new LEV II regulations to be phased in from 2004 to 2010, diesel passenger cars and light trucks will be included in the same category as gasoline-powered cars Also, in January of 2001, the US EPA announced the reduction of emission standards for 2007 and subsequent model year heavy-duty diesel engines These represent a 90% reduction of nitrogen oxide emissions, 72% reduction of non-methane hydrocarbon emissions, and 90% reduction of particulate matter emissions compared with the 2004 model standards As a result of these new regulations, most large diesel trucks will no longer be allowed to drive on California highways, and soon, on highways nationwide This could have an obviously devastating effect on the national economy, and This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 especially, on California’s due to the use there of about 525,000 heavy-duty diesel trucks and 680,000 diesel-fueled engines used in construction and agriculture To provide a solution to this problem, Massachusetts Institute of Technology in conjunction with Advanced Energy Industries, Inc has been in the process of developing a plasma treatment device for use with these engines This device will break down gasoline, diesel fuel, or other hydrocarbon fuels and create hydrogen-rich gas, a high quality fuel This is then used in the engine resulting in a drastic reduction of polluting chemicals, perhaps as much as a 100X reduction While an intern at Advanced Energy, the author has been responsible for providing prototype generators for the research being conducted at MIT This has entailed the design, construction, and troubleshooting of the amplifier circuit and necessary matching circuitry It is the intent to present the development of this generator as the author’s senior project b Background A plasma, as defined by the American Heritage Dictionary is, “highly ionized gas composed of ions, electrons, or neutral particles It is a phase of matter distinct from solids, liquids, and normal gases.” By exposing complex molecules to this highly energized state, the necessary energy is provided to increase reaction rates and break down these molecules This is the basic concept of the device currently in development by MIT and AE, a device called the, ‘Plasmatron’ Hydrocarbon fuel is injected into a chamber, though a plasma which is generated inside The plasma provides the energy to break the bonds, releasing hydrogen In it’s nominal operation, one fourth of the hydrocarbon fuel is routed through the Plasmatron and broken down The hydrogen-rich This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 fuel is combined with the remaining fuel and is provided to the engine The result is a modification of the combustion reactions leading to the reduced production of pollutants In order to create this plasma, it is necessary to utilize the 12V or 24V DC system present in large diesel trucks and convert it to a much higher voltage In the Plasmatron, this voltage is delivered across a circular spark-gap There must be a sufficiently high voltage to breakdown the dielectric (air/fuel mixture) and provide an arc By injecting this mixture between the two circular electrodes off-center, the fuel follows a cylindrical motion around the inside of the chamber Ordinarily the arc would remain at the location of the smallest distance between the electrodes This leads to erosion of the electrodes at these locations The cylindrical motion of the mixture forces the spark to also follow this cylindrical motion as it delivers it’s energy, hence a cylindrical plasma is formed Generating the necessary voltage to break down this spark gap and matching the generator to the load is the project at hand This has involved the creation of the necessary circuitry, rough bread-boarding of the circuit and initial testing, pc board design for integration into an early package, production of a fully operational prototype, and testing and improvement of said prototype Some of this work had been completed prior to EE413/EE415, and several prototype units with hand-soldered circuitry have been sent to MIT for testing What remained to be done at the beginning of EE415 was the design of a printed circuit board and it’s implementation in a more refined prototype package This will be presented as the conclusion of the author’s senior project This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 c Applications The Plasmatron holds the potential for use in a number of commercial applications Initial development is aimed towards use of the device in large trucks and equipment since these are often considered to be heavy polluters Eventually, as the device becomes more refined and compact, it will be introduced into the conventional automobile market The device can also be used to provide a hydrogen source for fuel cells By running conventional fossil fuels through it, hydrogen, CO, and CO2 are produced Fuel cells are intolerant of CO but have no problem with CO2 This limitation can be overcome by converting the CO to CO2 through use of a simple chemical reaction known as the, “water-shift reaction.” The CO2, and hydrogen is then fed into the fuel cell along with oxygen from the atmosphere The result is CO2, water and electricity In the case of fuel cell vehicles this could provide a just-in-time hydrogen source, allowing for the storage of energy in the relatively stable hydrocarbon molecules rather than through hydrogen stored in large and potentially dangerous tanks Finally, there is the possibility of using the Plasmatron in back-up power generators Running the device initially off of a battery, hydrogen would be produced to begin the operation of the fuel cell The fuel cell would produce enough energy to continue the operation of the Plasmatron, charge the battery and provide electrical power to a load, all while producing virtually zero emissions and storing the energy in relatively stable, conventional fossil fuels This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 d Advantages and Disadvantages There are many possible advantages to this plasma based system It’s implementation on large trucks, industrial equipment, and eventually on conventional automobiles will result in a drastic reduction of toxic and polluting emissions Implementation on fuel cell vehicles will remove the necessity and burden of carrying a dangerous and bulky hydrogen tank on board Implementation on backup generators will allow use of virtually any fossil fuel without the pollutants inherent in the use of internal combustion engines The Plasmatron’s small size and relative simplicity will make it suitable for use onboard vehicles without the requirement of reducing vehicle range and performance It will reduce the production of green house gases and conserve our nonrenewable energy resources The result will be a cleaner environment for all mankind In order to fulfill this promise, the Plasmatron will need to be cheap, small, and light in weight These are certainly prerequisites for application in the automobile industry Initial development has been aimed for the large truck and heavy equipment industries since there, these restrictions are not as stringent Once in production, the device will undoubtedly undergo a period of size and cost reduction The fruit of this effort will be a device of suitable size, cost and weight for implementation under the hood of every car in America There remain a few disadvantages that will need to be overcome in order for the Plasmatron to become a viable pollution-reduction option Foremost on this list is the generation of radio frequency interference and noise The generation of a voltage of magnitude great enough to break down the spark gap within the device requires a switching circuit utilizing a square wave signal Square wave signals retain high energy This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 even in harmonics of increasing frequency Sufficient shielding will have to be provided so that this noise does not harm electronics in or around the vehicle Another issue of some consequence would be the necessity to tailor the apparatus for each vehicle it would be installed in, since all vehicles are not built alike Mounting hardware, power connections and fuel flow hardware would have to be designed and modified for each different kind of vehicle on which the device was to be implemented This is simply a hurdle that will have to be dealt with at some point in time Finally, this is a device which will compete directly with other pollution reduction devices There are many groups around the world exploring concepts to reduce the emissions from vehicles to levels in agreement with the new EPA regulations It will be a challenge to maintain supremacy in this highly political and financial arena To so it will be necessary for the device to be inexpensive, easy to install and maintain, as well as the most effective This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Objective The objective of this project was the construction of an LF (Low Frequency) Output, DC Input Generator / Amplifier The frequency is slightly variable in the range from approximately 50kHz to 200kHz The amplifier supplies as much as 1kW of electrical power to a proprietary spark-gap apparatus through a suitable matching network The apparatus is being provided by MIT for use in the testing of this prototype generator For experimentation and practicality purposes, the power delivered will be varied by manually controlling the level of DC input voltage The generator and matching network were built and tested both at Advanced Energy Industries, Inc in Voorhees, NJ and at the NJIT, Mt Laurel Technology Center facility utilizing equipment in the laboratories of both facilities With the successful design, construction and testing of this prototype generator, all pertinent data has been included in this document and will be submitted for review by researchers at MIT, by the management of Advanced Energy, and by the faculty of NJIT A final presentation of the working prototype will be made on May 13, 2002 at NJIT – Mt Laurel This will including a demonstration of the generator’s ability to create and maintain an atmospheric plasma (Generation of hydrocarbon plasmas had been left to MIT and others who are crazy enough to it) This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 10 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Above - Bottom of Power Boar This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 30 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Bill of Materials This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 31 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 10 Testing and Analysis The Plasmatron prototype generator circuitry has been thoroughly tested to ensure the prototype unit is of the highest quality and meets as many, if not all, of the design criteria The unit has been run for many hours non-stop at Advanced Energy to ensure no failure of components occurs Temperature of various components have been monitored to ensure that adequate cooling is provided so that the temperature of these components will not exceed their operating tolerances At each stage in the logic circuitry, waveforms have been measured using a digital storage oscilloscope This has insured that the gate waveforms remained crisp and square throughout the logic path and that the opposing signals remained 180 degrees out of phase A problem could occur if the traces on both sides of the amplifier were not uniform The difference in trace length would create a phase variance which could cause one side of the amplifier to engage before the other side is off If this were to occur the output of the generator would not maintain at it’s specified parameters and the power FETs would undergo undo stress leading to possible failure To correct for this condition, trace lengths have been designed to be as consistent as possible Also, to minimize the effect of switching or other types of noise in the gate waveforms, bypass capacitors of varying values have been installed at the supply of each device Finally, in order to ensure that matched conditions exist and maximum power transfer is attained, the value of a series inductor would need to be adjusted By measuring the output impedance of the generator, utilizing a network analyzer, and by estimating the impedance of the plasma load, the correct inductance value can be chosen It is then a matter of adding or removing turns on this series inductor in order to modify This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 32 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 the inductance and the matched conditions Based on the characteristics of the current rendition of MIT’s spark gap and on the characteristics of the current prototype, no series inductor is required to achieve reasonably well matched conditions There is of course some mismatch present and this could be corrected for by adding this component in the future This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 33 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 C) Results of the Project 11 Originally Proposed Project Schedule 1/1/02 – 1/22/02 Task Power Section PC Board Design Logic Section PC Board Design Estimated Time 12 Hours 12 Hours Deadline 1/10/02 1/22/02 1/23/02 – 2/13/02 Task Cut Logic & Power Boards Populate Boards Initial Board Testing Estimated Time 24 Hours 24 Hours Hours Deadline 1/30/02 2/6/02 2/13/02 2/14/02 – 3/7/02 Task Cut BUD box Mount fan, switch, etc Mount heat sink & PC Boards Estimated Time Hours Hours Hours Deadline 2/18/02 2/24/02 3/7/02 3/8/02 – 3/29/02 Task Estimated Time Complete assembly and packaging 10 Hours Begin testing and minor modifications 15 Hours Deadline 3/21/02 3/29/02 3/30/02 – 4/20/02 Task Final testing Bring prototype and equipment to NJIT and setup Total Estimated Time : Final Presentation: Estimated Time Hours Hours Deadline 4/8/02 4/9/02 15 Weeks May 13, 2002 11:00AM NJIT Lab 302 – Mt Laurel, NJ This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 34 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 12 Concessions to Time Limitations The author is happy to report that no concessions were made due to time limitations The only challenge has been trying to provide prototype units simultaneously for MIT, our new customer, and to have one for the author’s senior project presentation In fact, the unit being demonstrated on the 13th will be sent immediately afterwards to Advanced Energy’s corporate headquarters in Ft Collins, CO for demonstration and appraisal by our engineers at that facility This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 35 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 13 Final Result Pictured below is the completed Plasmatron 200kHz Prototype Unit It meets or exceeds all of the pre-specified requirements While much work is left to be done in terms of productization and cost reduction, clearly the prototype unit demonstrates the feasibility of the concept The constructed generator converts between 12 and 24 Vdc to a 200kHz AC waveform between 15kV and 20kV in magnitude It can provide upwards of 1000W of power to an atmospheric plasma over a long duration It has met all of MIT and our client’s expectations to date It is the sincere hope of the author that this work and development will lead to a device, which will eventually help to curb the production of polluting chemicals and preserve our environment for the generations that follow This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 36 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 14 Directions on Generator Operation for Demonstration Purposes This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 37 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 38 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 39 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Variable DC Supply Connections – Above and Below This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 40 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Other generator connections – above and below Steps for Successful Generator Operation 1) Make all connections as illustrated 2) Start air flow through orifice 3) Switch logic power on, observe power has been supplied to fan 4) Set the current limit on the DC supply to no more than 20A 5) Turn on the Variable DC supply and allow the output voltage to stabilize at between 10 and 15 volts 6) A plasma should be observable in the orifice, if it is not, check to ensure that a high voltage waveform is present across the gap Exercise extreme caution, lethal voltages may be present This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 41 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 7) If the waveform is present, simply increase the DC input until the sufficient voltage is generated to break down the gap You should not have to increase the current limit to this, if you find that you have no plasma and the current limit is enacted, there is a problem with the generator or setup, a short is present 8) Once a plasma has been formed, increase DC input and therefore power level as desired, not to exceed 50A DC input current Also, monitor the FET temperature using the provided ohm meter connections and provided table or thermocouple depending upon the configuration of that particular prototype Do not let the FET temperature exceed 120 degrees C Monitor the temperature continuously as it is possible for the unit to enter a slow thermal runaway This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 42 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 D) References a Individuals/Qualifications Anton Mavretic, Ph.D Vice President, Technology Fellow Advanced Energy Industries, Inc Voorhees, NJ 08043 Leslie Bromberg, Ph.D Research Scientist Massachusetts Institute of Technology Plasma Science Fusion Laboratory 167 Albany Street Cambridge, MA 02139 Alexander Rabinovich, Ph.D Research Scientist Massachusetts Institute of Technology Plasma Science Fusion Laboratory 167 Albany Street Cambridge, MA 02139 b Published Sources Bureau of Transportation Statistics 400 7th Street, SW Room 3430 Washington, DC 20590 L’Enfant Plaza Metrorail Station (7th and D Streets) answers@bts.gov 800-853-1351 http://www.bts.gov/btsprod/nts/Ch1_web/1-9.htm California Environmental Protection Agency California Air Resources Board “Reduced Emission Standards for 2007 and Subsequent Model Year Heavy-Duty Diesel Engines” September 10, 2001 (626) 459-4365 gushijim@arb.ca.gov http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/onroadhd/reducstd.htm “State Air Quality Program Offers Incentives to Reduce Diesel Emissions” from “Public Policy Update”, Breathe Easy news magazine, Fall 2001/Winter 2002 http://www.californialung.org/advocacy/airquality_01fw.html This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 43 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Diesel Technology Forum 11/30/00 “Overview of Principal California Diesel Regulations and Initiatives” One Dulles Tech Center 2191 Fox Mill Road, Suite 100 Herndon, Virginia 20171 http://www.dieselforum.org/factsheet/californiaregulations.html Massachusetts Institute of Technology Plasma Science Fusion Center 167 Albany Street Cambridge, MA 02139 http://www.psfc.mit.edu/plasmatech/plasmatron1.html This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's use is restricted to academic evaluation unless specifically approved in writing by a designated representative of Advanced Energy Industries, Inc 44 ... work had been completed prior to EE4 13 /EE4 15, and several prototype units with hand-soldered circuitry have been sent to MIT for testing What remained to be done at the beginning of EE4 15 was the... Industries, Inc 35 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 13 Final Result Pictured below is the completed Plasmatron 200kHz Prototype Unit It meets or exceeds all of the pre-specified requirements... Industries, Inc 17 Plasmatron Plasma Exciter May 3, 2002 Figure - Plasmatron 200kHz - Power Circuit Diagram This page contains data proprietary to Advanced Energy Industries, Inc of Voorhees, NJ It's