Dielectric Barrier Discharge: Generation and Enhancement of Hydrogen Peroxide Action
摘要
Barrier dielectricDielectrics dischargeDischarge is a type of gas dischargeDischarge betweenDielectric barrier discharge electrodesHydrogen peroxide, one or both of which are coated with a dielectricDielectrics layer. Due to the insulating properties of the coating, the avalanche-like development of the dischargeDischarge is limited in amplitude, because of which cold plasma is formed. Although the phenomenon itself was discovered almost two hundred years ago (1857), the real possibilities for its practical application were discovered only in the last couple of decades. Since then, the number of useful applications has been growing exponentially and this trend will continue for the foreseeable future. Cold plasma technologies cover such areas as surface treatment for electronics and polymer materials, the food industry, biomedicalBiomedical usage, and even wastewater treatmentWastewater purification. In the food industry, these methods are used for food decontamination, food quality improvement, toxin degradation, and surface modifications of packaging materials. Cold plasma has proven effective for the inactivation of various pathogens and spoilage organisms without adversely affecting food quality. Cold plasma treatment of water enables to carry out of processes of pesticide decomposition, discoloration of dyes, and general disinfection. Low-temperature plasmas can be generated in usual conditions: normal atmospheric pressure and temperatures below 37 °C, so have opened up a new frontier of applications: biomedicalBiomedical ones. Medical usage of cold plasma includes sterilization, wound healing, disease treatments, and not only. Experimental work conducted at several major universities, research centers, and companies around the world over the recent decade demonstrates that plasma can be used in a variety of medical applications. It is already widely used in surgeries and endoscopic procedures and has been shown to control the properties of cellular and tissue matrices, including the biocompatibility of various substrates. Non-thermal plasma has been demonstrated to deactivate dangerous pathogens to stop bleeding without damaging healthy tissue and to treat cancer. Although cold plasma technology has shown promising results, it requires further studies to understand the reactive gas chemistry and toxicological, ecological, and economic impacts of this technology. We realize that mechanisms of plasma interaction with complex natural systems, especially with living tissues must be not very simple, because of the complexity of both: plasma itself and treated objects. So, the discovery of a unified mechanism is unlikely. Anyhow we have a strong belief that the prime cause of miraculous healing is connected with the production of hydrogen peroxideHydrogen peroxide, other forms of active oxygen and its reactive species (radicalsActive radicals and non-radicals), charged particles, photons, and electric fields, which have impactful biological effects.