Assignment 1 EMFT

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (NUST)
SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL ENGG & COMPUTER SCS (SEECS)
EE-241: Electro-Magnetic Field Theory

Fall 2019
ASSIGNMENT 1
SUBMITTED BY: SUBMITTED TO:

Saad Nadeem Dr. Salman Ghafoor
CMS: 208857
BEE-9D
Date of Submission: 27th Sept, 2019

INTRODUCTION:
New uses of corona discharge in need of droplet spreading has been proposed. The discharge
causes the ionization of air molecules surrounding a sharp-tipped conductor maintained at a
very high voltage. Attraction between the resulting free charges on top of the droplets guide
the motion of these droplets under the effect of the induced electric field. The spreading of the
droplets, under certain conditions, forms a pattern of cells, greater than that of the size of the
spread film. This phenomenon was recognized and named as ‘Rose Window Instability
(RWI)’.
EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS:
For the phenomenon to reveal itself, requires certain conditions: a liquid, or any fluid, with
very low conductivity resulting in a dielectric film to the charges trying to flow; a sharp tipped
needle-point-like electrode to ionize the surrounding air molecules; a VERY HIGH DC
Voltage Source.
The experimental setup consists of a wooden frame stood to support the electrode needle kept
at a certain height above the oil flame, powered by a high voltage DC source.
EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS:
Critical Voltage:
The voltage at which the instability manifests itself, as a function of liquid thickness and
electrode in height, is know as the critical voltage. The beginning of the phenomenon shows
itself with a ‘dimple’ on the surface. Experiments show that:
1. The critical voltage increases almost linearly with the increase in electrode-pin height.
2. The critical voltage presents a roughly linear relation with the thickness of the oil-film,
keeping the pin height constant.
Geometric Characteristics:
It is practically observed that if the voltage is kept constant, at a value above the critical voltage,
a geometric configuration of honeycomb like cell is settled at the liquid-air boundary interface,
with a nearly circular outline. The spread of this instability is explored as a function of the
radial distance from the pin to the edge of the pattern, known as the instability radius. A steadily
increasing relation is observed which then reaches a saturation value and remains constant.
This is attributed to the angle deviation of the electric field and the tendency of it to reduce the
inhomogenity of the field acting on the surface.
Since the electric field in strongest below the tip of electrode, the largest cells formed are
observed at the center as compared to radially outwards.
Surface Charge Density & V-I Characteristics:
The primary cause of RWI is the strength of the field acting on the charges at the surface of the
oil layer. The charged ions carry certain energy, which when bombard the oil surface, increase
its temperature. To observe this change, thermal imaging is used at intervals: beginning, 2 mins,
5 mins and 10 mins; a marked rising temperature difference is observed.
The RWI can be visualized as the breaking of a dielectric barrier for the passage of electricity,
like that of transistors. It is observed that initially, zero current flows to the ground electrode.
However, as the cells and instability appear, more ions can travel to the ground electrode and
current increases rapidly. Hence, an exponential I-V relation/curve is observed.
CONCLUSION:
The RWI is the influence of the electric field of a needle point electrode on the ions of a thin
oil film, which are guided under the point. These charges want to flow towards the ground but
the dielectric oil between prevents so. Thereby, the charges accumulate and act a force on the
oil film, forcing their way through to the ground electrode. This process of self-reorganizing
the molecules is also the tendency to achieve stability of every system. We also conclude the
factors affecting the RWI and the causes of this instability.

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NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (NUST)

SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL ENGG & COMPUTER SCS (SEECS)

EE-241: Electro-Magnetic Field Theory

SUBMITTED BY: SUBMITTED TO:

Date of Submission: 27th Sept, 2019

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