Research on key influencing factors and mechanisms of improved nitrogen fixation efficiency in magnetic-driven gliding arc

Abstract Gliding arc is considered to be an efficient method for nitrogen fixation. In this study, an improved magnetic-driven rotating gliding arc method was adopted to investigate the effects of gas flow rate, current, magnetic field, nitrogen-to-oxygen ratio in the working gas, and relative humidity on nitrogen fixation efficiency. To further understand the relationship between the discharge mechanism and nitrogen fixation efficiency, the arc length, arc diameter, arc rotation frequency, and reaction pathway were studied to find the relationship between external parameters, discharge characteristics, and nitrogen fixation efficiency. The research results indicate that the discharge current and magnetic field not only change the rotation frequency of the gliding arc, but also affect its length and diameter, and the amount of ionizing gases involved in the working gas, thus affecting nitrogen fixation efficiency. When the nitrogen volume ratio in the feed gas is 60%, the lowest energy cost can be achieved, which is 18.6% lower than that of air. The energy cost of nitrogen fixation is closely related to the humidity of the air. As the humidity increases, the energy cost also increases. At the magnetic field strength of 160 mT, gas flow rate of 10 l min −1 , and current of 40 mA, the energy cost of 1.708 MJ mol −1 is realized which is the current lowest for plasma nitrogen fixation in this study.