Understanding how plasma interacts with liquids is an important aspect of plasma-based water treatment research. Imaging the discharge can provide quantitative information about its propagation and the area of direct plasma–liquid interaction.
In a recent study, Devos et al. investigated nitrite production using nanosecond plasma discharges interacting with acoustically levitated water droplets. The researchers found that nitrite production was strongly correlated with the plasma–droplet interface area.
To characterize this interaction, an Excelitas pco.panda 26 DS camera was used to record the plasma discharge around the levitated droplet. The camera was operated with a 1 ms exposure time and coupled with a Nikon AF-S Micro NIKKOR 60 mm f/2.8 G ED macro lens.
The images were used to determine the width of the plasma–droplet interface and to establish whether the plasma propagated around the droplet or remained localized near the droplet poles. This information was then used to estimate the effective plasma–droplet interface area.
The study reported an average interfacial nitrite production of 17 ± 1 pmol·mm⁻²·discharge⁻¹ across the investigated experimental conditions, supporting the importance of the direct plasma–liquid interface in the process.
The example demonstrates how scientific imaging can go beyond visual documentation to provide quantitative information about plasma–liquid interactions.
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