Fungus Inactivation Using Reactive Species Generated by Plasma Jet Submerged in Water

A plasma jet was completely submerged in water contaminated by fungus spores. The used fungal samples are Fusarium pseudograminearum and Alternaria graminicola which are known for their severe infection potential to plants and harvests. The plasma jet is used in order to generate highly reactive oxygen and nitrogen based species in the suspension volume 1 , those species are known to have a strong inactivation effect on fungus spores 2 . To ensure the creation of important concentrations of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS), a mixture of working gases is used to ignite the plasma. Argon, Argon mixed to air and Argon mixed to nitrous oxide (N 2 O) gas were used. After the treatment is performed, the samples are isolated and incubated to check the decontamination efficiency.