A finite volume method for electrostatic three species negative corona discharge simulations with application to externally charged powder bells

Journal article, 2015

A three species model for steady-state negative corona discharge is studied. Ionization, attachment, and recombination reactions are modeled. A novel unstructured finite volume algorithm to solve the equations is presented, using the secondary emission of electrons from the cathode to set boundary values for the electrons. To show the usefulness of the method for industrial applications it is used to characterize the electrostatic properties of an externally charged rotary powder bell used in the automotive industry. Experimental current density profiles are reconstructed with good accuracy, which validates the model and the method with real experimental data.