Onset conditions for positive direct current corona discharges in air under the action of photoionization

This paper presents a numerical model for the inception of positive dc corona discharges in air near cylindrical anodes, which plays a bridge role between the classic positive corona onset criterion and the photoionization model considering the effective radiation wavelength. The predicted onset voltages agree well with Peek's experimental data in a wide range of conductor radii and relative air densities. The influence of the collisional quenching of emitting excited states on the surface onset field is significant with low air density or small conductor radius. Within the effective radiation wavelength, numerical expressions for the photon absorption coefficient in air and Townsend's second coefficient due to photoionization are deduced on the basis of the new model. A different perspective on the classic coefficients is given. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3671970]