Kinetics of the Electronic States of Molecular Nitrogen in a Recombining Air/Argon Plasma

International audienceAn electronic-specific collisional-radiative (CR) model of molecular nitrogen (N2) is presented and applied to the study of a recombining air plasma. This plasma is produced at local thermodynamic equilibrium at 8000 K and 1 atm by a 50-kW Inductively Coupled Plasma torch and passes through a water-cooled tube that forces rapid cooling and recombination. The electronic state-specific model takes into account many processes, including (but not limited to) predissociation of N2(C), collisional quenching, and radiation. The 0D simulations are compared with measurements of the nonequilibrium species densities