TY - JOUR

T1 - Simplified method for calculation of equilibrium plasma composition

AU - Rydalevskaya, Maria A.

PY - 2017/6/15

Y1 - 2017/6/15

N2 - In this work, a simplified method for the evaluation of equilibrium composition of plasmas consisted of monoatomic species is proposed. Multicomponent gas systems resulting from thermal ionization of spatially uniform mixtures are assumed enough rarefied to be treated as ideal gases even after multiple ionization steps. The method developed for the calculation of equilibrium composition of these mixtures makes use of the fundamental principles of statistical physics. Equilibrium concentrations of mixture components are determined by integration of distribution functions over the space of momentum and summation over electronic energy levels. These functions correspond to the entropy maximum. To determine unknown parameters, the systems of equations corresponding to the normalization conditions are derived. It is shown that the systems may be reduced to one algebraic equation if the equilibrium temperature is known. Numeral method to solve this equation is proposed. Special attention is given to the ionized mixtures, generated from the atoms of a single chemical species and the situations, when in the gas only the first- or the first- and second-order ionization are possible.

AB - In this work, a simplified method for the evaluation of equilibrium composition of plasmas consisted of monoatomic species is proposed. Multicomponent gas systems resulting from thermal ionization of spatially uniform mixtures are assumed enough rarefied to be treated as ideal gases even after multiple ionization steps. The method developed for the calculation of equilibrium composition of these mixtures makes use of the fundamental principles of statistical physics. Equilibrium concentrations of mixture components are determined by integration of distribution functions over the space of momentum and summation over electronic energy levels. These functions correspond to the entropy maximum. To determine unknown parameters, the systems of equations corresponding to the normalization conditions are derived. It is shown that the systems may be reduced to one algebraic equation if the equilibrium temperature is known. Numeral method to solve this equation is proposed. Special attention is given to the ionized mixtures, generated from the atoms of a single chemical species and the situations, when in the gas only the first- or the first- and second-order ionization are possible.

KW - Concentrations of atoms, ions, free electrons

KW - Equilibrium distribution functions

KW - Statistical description of ionized gases

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85014492934&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.physa.2017.02.025

DO - 10.1016/j.physa.2017.02.025

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85014492934

VL - 476

SP - 49

EP - 57

JO - Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications

JF - Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications

SN - 0378-4371

ER -