CN101754562B - Atmosphere plasma generating device with arc control function - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention discloses an atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function, comprising an outer shell, an inner electrode, an airflow control mechanism and at least one arc guide electrode. The outer shell has an electrode setting end and a plasma outlet end opposite to each other. The inner electrode is arranged in the outer shell and located at the electrode setting end, wherein the inner electrode is connected to a power supply. The airflow control mechanism is arranged at the electrode setting end, and is used to generate a vortex airflow around the inner electrode, thereby concentrating the arc generated by the inner electrode at a central position in the outer shell, and guiding the arc to the plasma outlet end. The arc guide electrode is arranged at the plasma outlet end and connected to the power supply, wherein the arc guide electrode has a tip protruding from the inner surface of the plasma outlet end, and is used to attract the arc, thereby controlling the position of the arc.

Description

Atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function

technical field

The invention relates to an atmospheric plasma generating device, and in particular to an atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function. the

Background technique

The characteristic of plasma is that it includes the reactions of neutral particles, activated particles, electrons and ions, etc., so it can provide a very wide range of functions. Particles with energy, in particular, can trigger many special chemical and physical reactions. Because of this, at present, plasma has been widely used in various fields. For example, in semiconductor manufacturing, the growth of films of different materials and the etching of circuits are generally achieved by plasma technology. In terms of semiconductor packaging, it can be seen that plasma is used to clean and change the surface of materials to achieve the required functions and effects. In addition, the application of plasma can also be seen in the fields of environmental protection, medical treatment and opto-mechanical electronics. the

The type of plasma source is related to the form of plasma generation, including inductive plasma source, microwave surface wave plasma source, atmospheric plasma source, plasma immersion ion implantation and plasma torch, etc. In the atmospheric plasma source, due to the energy concentration of the jet atmospheric plasma, it can be used to treat the surface of the workpiece at high speed to improve the hydrophilic properties of the surface. However, when it is applied to the surface of workpieces made of metal materials or conductive materials, the arc caused by the plasma is very easy to overflow to the surface of the workpiece and damage the surface of the workpiece, resulting in the generation of defective workpieces and affecting the manufacturing process. yield. the

Contents of the invention

The present invention relates to an atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function. Through the design of the arc guiding electrode and the airflow field, the position of the arc is controlled in the device, thereby avoiding the arc from damaging the surface of the workpiece to be processed, and further Improve the excellent rate of the preparation process. the

According to the present invention, an atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function is proposed. The device includes a casing, an inner electrode, an airflow control mechanism and at least one arc guiding electrode. The casing has an electrode setting end and a plasma outlet end opposite to each other. The inner electrode is arranged in the casing and is located at the electrode setting end, wherein the inner electrode is connected to a power supply. The air flow control mechanism is arranged at the electrode setting end to generate a vortex air flow around the inner electrode, through which the arc generated by the inner electrode is concentrated in the center of the shell, and the arc is guided to the plasma outlet end. The arc guiding electrode is arranged at the plasma outlet and connected to the power supply, wherein the arc guiding electrode has a tip protruding from the inner surface of the plasma outlet to attract the arc and thereby control the position of the arc. the

In order to make the above-mentioned content of the present invention more obvious and understandable, the preferred embodiments are cited below, and in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, the detailed description is as follows:

Description of drawings

Fig. 1A is a schematic diagram of an atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 1B is a schematic diagram of the atmospheric plasma generating device in Figure 1A on the plasma outlet side;

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram in which the tip of the arc guiding electrode is a spherical surface;

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the arc guiding electrode connected to the power supply through the casing;

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of adding an opening reduction element to the atmospheric plasma generating device;

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing that the arc guiding electrode is a hollow electrode. the

【Description of main component symbols】

100: Atmospheric plasma generation device

110: shell

112: electrode setting terminal

114: Plasma outlet port

120: Internal electrode

132: Plasma Exit

140: Airflow control mechanism

142: Gas guide element

144: oblique through hole

150, 150’, 150”: Arc Steering Electrodes

152, 152': tip

152": through channel

160: wire

170: isolation element

180, 180': opening reduction element

182, 182': opening

200: power supply

300: Vortex airflow

400: Arc

500: Plasma Gas

A1, A2: Extension direction

Detailed ways

Please refer to FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B. FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of an atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a view of the atmospheric plasma generating device in FIG. 1A on the plasma outlet side. schematic diagram. As shown in FIG. 1A , the atmospheric plasma generating device 100 includes a housing 110 , an inner electrode 120 , and an airflow control mechanism 140 and other components. The configuration and function of each component will be described below one by one. the

The shell 110 is, for example, a hollow shell, which has an electrode setting end 112 and a plasma outlet end 114 opposite to each other. The material of the shell 110 can be metal or non-metal material. the

The internal electrode 120 is disposed in the casing 110 and located at the electrode setting end 112 , wherein the internal electrode 120 is connected to a power supply 200 . The internal electrode 120 is, for example, a metal electrode, mostly copper, or stainless steel, tungsten-like refractory metals or alloys. The voltage provided by the power supply 200 dissociates the gas adjacent to the inner electrode 120 to form a plasma gas composed of free electrons, positively charged ions, and unionized atoms. Also due to the presence of negatively charged free electrons and positively charged ions, the plasma gas has a high electrical conductivity, thereby generating the effect of the arc 400 . the

The plasma outlet port 114 has a plasma outlet 132 . The shape of the plasma outlet 132 is not limited, and its size can be set according to requirements, such as the outlet flow rate of the plasma gas.

The air flow control mechanism 140 is arranged at the electrode setting end 112 to generate a swirl air flow 300 around the inner electrode 120, thereby concentrating the arc 400 generated by the inner electrode 120 toward the center of the housing 110 and guiding the arc 400 to Plasma outlet port 114 . Since the flow path can be enlarged to reduce the plasma gas flow rate when the arc 400 is contained in the cavity of the housing 110, the probability of the arc 400 spilling is preliminarily reduced. the

As shown in FIG. 1A , the airflow control mechanism 140 includes, for example, an air guiding element 142 and an air supply (not shown). The gas guiding element 142 has a plurality of oblique through holes 144 located around the inner electrode 120 and connected to the casing 110 . The oblique through holes 144 may be parallel to each other. In addition, the extending direction Al of the oblique through holes 144 is preferably obliquely related to the extending direction A2 of the internal electrode 120 . the

The gas supplied by the gas supplier (not shown) passes through the oblique through hole 142 and enters the casing 110 . And when the gas is poured into the casing 110 from the oblique through hole 144 , due to the configuration of the oblique through hole 144 , the injected gas will rotate around the inner electrode 120 , thus generating a vortex flow around the inner electrode 120 300 , and then, the arc 400 is guided by the vortex air flow 300 to move. In this way, the arc 400 can be controlled at a central location within the enclosure 110 . the

Jet atmospheric plasma can be used to treat the material surface at high speed and improve the hydrophilicity of the material surface due to its energy concentration. However, when it is applied to the surface of metal materials or conductor materials, the arc caused by the plasma will overflow to the metal surface, causing Damage to metal surfaces. Here, the position where the arc 400 is generated is guided to the inner side of the cavity of the casing 110 mainly by using the configuration and design of the arc guiding electrode, so that there is no overflowing arc at the plasma outlet. the

Preferably, at least one arc guiding electrode can be installed in the atmospheric plasma generating device 100, and the arc guiding electrode is preferably inserted in the plasma outlet port 114 along the radial direction of the plasma outlet port 114, The inner electrode 120 and the arc guiding electrode are respectively connected to the positive pole and the negative pole (or ground terminal) of the power supply 200 . the

In this embodiment, four arc guiding electrodes 150 are taken as an example for illustration, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and only a single arc guiding electrode 150 may be installed in the plasma outlet end 114 of the atmospheric plasma generating device 100 Or other numbers of arc guiding electrodes 150 . In addition, the arc guiding electrode 150 can be a solid or hollow tube, and the solid arc guiding electrode 150 (see FIG. 1A ) will be used for illustration. the

The arc steering electrodes 150 are equally spaced interposed in the plasma outlet port 114, as shown in FIG. 1B . The arc guiding electrodes 150 are connected to the power supply 200 or a ground terminal, wherein each arc guiding electrode 150 has a tip 152 protruding from the inner surface of the plasma outlet port 114 . Since the design of the tip 152 concentrates the charge, a tip discharge effect can be created by which the arc 400 can be attracted, thereby controlling the position of the arc 400 in the plasma outlet port 114, further avoiding the problem of arc spillage. the

The tip 152 in FIG. 1B is in the form of a pointed point, but the present invention is not limited thereto. As shown in FIG. 2, the tip 152' of the arc guiding electrode 150' can also be a spherical shape, which also has the characteristics of attracting arcs. the

Since the material of the housing 110 can be metal or non-metal, when the material of the housing 110 is non-metal, as shown in FIG. 1A , the arc guiding electrode 150 can be connected to the power supply 200 through the wire 160 . the

Next, please refer to FIG. 3 , which is a schematic diagram of the arc guiding electrode connected to the power supply through the shell. As shown in FIG. 3 , when the material of the housing 110 is metal, the arc guiding electrode 150 can actually be directly connected to the power supply 200 through the housing 110 . At this time, in order to avoid electrical contact between the outer shell 110 and the inner electrode 120 , it is preferable to arrange an isolation element 170 between the inner electrode 120 and the outer shell 110 to isolate the inner electrode 120 from the outer shell 110 . the

The material of the isolation element 170 can be a dielectric material such as quartz, ceramic or polymer material. In addition, an isolation element 170 may also be provided between the gas guide element 142 and the inner electrode 120 to properly maintain the electrical insulation between each element. the

Please refer to FIG. 4 , which is a schematic diagram of adding an aperture reduction element to the atmospheric plasma generating device. As shown in FIG. 4 , the aperture reducing element 180 is disposed at the plasma outlet 132 , wherein the opening 182 of the aperture reducing element 180 is smaller than the plasma outlet 132 . The opening reducing element 180 can not only reduce the outlet width of the plasma gas, but also block unnecessary arc spillage, thereby assisting in controlling the position of the arc. Preferably, the opening reducing element 180 is made of insulating material. the

Please refer to FIG. 5 , which is a schematic diagram of the arc guiding electrode as a hollow electrode. As shown in FIG. 5, the arc guiding electrode 150" has a through channel 152", and the through channel 152" is connected to the plasma outlet port 114, so that the space in the plasma outlet port 114 can also be guided through the arc. The electrode 150" is connected to the outside atmosphere. The opening 182' of the opening reducing element 180' shrinks the plasma outlet 132 even smaller, thereby causing the gas pressure of the plasma outlet 132 to increase and the outlet flow rate of the plasma gas to increase significantly. Too high-speed plasma gas has a strong impact force, and it is also easy to bring out an overflow arc, so it is easy to cause damage to the surface of the workpiece to be processed. the

For example, when the atmospheric plasma generating device 100 is used to perform coating treatment on the workpiece surface, the gas pressure will increase due to the reduction of the diameter of the plasma outlet 132, which will increase the probability of gas particle collisions, which is not conducive to controlling the cost. film quality. Since the space in the plasma outlet port 114 can be connected to the external atmosphere through the through passage 152 ″ of the arc guiding electrode 150 ″, when the plasma gas is generated, part of the gas can be discharged from the through passage 152 ″ to the external space, so it can Effectively reduce the outlet flow rate, thereby reducing the impact of the plasma gas, so as to protect the workpiece to be processed. 

In the atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function disclosed in the above embodiments of the present invention, an arc guiding electrode is arranged at a position adjacent to the plasma outlet to attract the arc, so as to guide the position where the arc is generated to the cavity of the casing The inner side, so that the plasma outlet does not have a spilled arc, thus avoiding the arc from touching the surface of the workpiece to be treated. In addition, an appropriate airflow field will be designed in the casing to limit the direction of the arc through the guidance of the airflow, so that the plasma generation position is closer to the plasma outlet. Furthermore, when the size of the plasma outlet is reduced, a hollow arc guiding electrode can be used to assist gas discharge, so that the flow rate of the plasma outlet is reduced, thereby reducing the damage caused by the plasma gas to the surface of the workpiece to be treated. The atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function disclosed in the above-mentioned embodiments of the present invention can substantially improve the yield rate of the workpiece manufacturing process, and has wider application in the field of atmospheric plasma. the

To sum up, although the present invention has been disclosed as above with preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Those skilled in the art of the present invention can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be defined by the appended claims.

Claims (15)

1. An atmospheric plasma generating device with arc control function, characterized in that it comprises: A housing with an electrode setting end and a plasma outlet end opposite to each other; an internal electrode is arranged in the shell and located at the electrode setting end, wherein the inner electrode is connected to a power supply; An airflow control mechanism, arranged at the electrode setting end, is used to generate a vortex airflow around the inner electrode, through which the arc generated by the inner electrode is concentrated in the center of the shell, and the arc is guided to the a plasma outlet port; and At least one arc guiding electrode is disposed at the plasma outlet end and connected to the power supply, wherein each of the at least one arc guiding electrode has a tip, and the tip is located at a point protruding from the plasma outlet end. Inner surface to attract the arc to control the position of the arc. 2 . The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one arc guiding electrode is inserted in the plasma outlet end along the radial direction of the plasma outlet end. 3 . 3. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of arc guiding electrodes, and the arc guiding electrodes are equally spaced and inserted at the plasma outlet end. 4. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 1, wherein the inner electrode is connected to the positive pole of the power supply, and the at least one arc guiding electrode is connected to the negative pole of the power supply or a ground end. 5. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 1, wherein the casing is made of metal, the casing is connected to the power supply, and the at least one arc guiding electrode is connected to the power supply through the casing. The negative terminal of the power supply or a ground terminal. 6 . The atmospheric plasma generating device as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising an isolation element disposed between the inner electrode and the outer shell to isolate the inner electrode from the outer shell. 7 . 7. The atmospheric plasma generator as claimed in claim 6, wherein the material of the isolation element is a dielectric material. 8. Atmospheric plasma generating device as claimed in claim 7, is characterized in that, this dielectric material is pottery, quartz or polymer material. 9. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises an aperture reducing element disposed at the plasma outlet end, wherein the aperture reducing element has an opening smaller than the plasma The size of the export. 10 . The atmospheric plasma generating device as claimed in claim 9 , wherein a material of the aperture reducing element is an insulating material. 11 . 11. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 1, wherein the tip of the at least one arc guiding electrode has a sharp point or a spherical surface. 12. The atmospheric plasma generating device as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the at least one arc guiding electrode is a hollow electrode, and each of the electrodes has a hole for communicating with the plasma outlet port. The inner space and one of the outer spaces of the shell run through the passage. 13. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 1, wherein the gas flow control mechanism comprises a gas guide element, the gas guide element has a plurality of oblique through holes, and the through holes are located at the The periphery of the inner electrode is connected to the outer casing for gas to pass through and enter the outer casing. 14. The atmospheric plasma generating device according to claim 13, wherein the oblique through holes are parallel to each other. 15 . The atmospheric plasma generating device as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the extending direction of the oblique through holes and the extending direction of the inner electrode present an oblique relationship. 16 . the

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