Plasma behavior and characteristics of a pulsed-laser-driven MHD electrical power generation

The fundamental electrical power generation experiment of a pulsed-laser-driven MHD generator with a divergent channel and segmented electrodes has been conducted with a rough estimate of gas heating efficiency of laser energy. The output energy is increased with the decrease in the initial filling gas pressure because of the increase in the gas velocity and the electrical conductivity with the gas temperature. The output power is surely improved in comparison with the previously examined generator with constant height channel and continuous electrode. About 70% of incident laser energy is absorbed and less than 20% is transferred to blast wave energy at low initial filling gas pressure in the present experimental set-up. © 2018 The Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan.