Abstract:
The experimental results and a computer simulation of charging of carbon nanoparticles formed in the
process of pyrolysis of the carbon suboxide $\mathrm{C}_3$$\mathrm{O}_2$ behind shock waves are presented. It is shown that the time necessary for the onset of an equilibrium distribution of charges in the gas–nanoparticle system at pressures of $15$--$30$~bar decreases from $400$ to $40$~s with a temperature rise from $2000$ to $3600$ K. The equilibrium concentration of free electrons in the presence of nanoparticles in the mixture is much lower than that in the same gas without particles. Step ionization of sodium and a subsequent recombination of free electrons and sodium ions on the nanoparticle surface are considered in order to analyze the kinetics of nanoparticle charging.