Effect of solution characteristics on the discharge in the PEF treatment chamber

Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) processing is the application of the high-voltage technology in the biological science and food technology. One of the main limitations of the technology is the electrical breakdown of the treatment chamber under the repetitive high-voltage pulses. This paper focuses on the discharge process in the internal treatment chamber, mainly researching on the characteristics of the conductive liquid breakdown with different conductivity and concentration of oxygen dissolution in the cross-field and the co-field treatment chambers. Experimental results prove that the number and size of gas bubbles formed during the PEF process determined the electric discharge. The influence of the physical properties of the liquid on discharge and breakdown in treatment chamber were studied, the experimental results showed that discharge and breakdown possibility increased and the electric field strength decreased with the increase of solution conductivity and air content. In practical application, degassing process should be used to reduce air content of the solution, to lower the probability of partial dielectric breakdown.