Why does the Plasma Continue to Exist Past beyond its Breakdown Voltage Gap

[ricards]

To be Precise:
Why does the Plasma Continue to Exist past beyond its Breakdown Voltage Gap where it was created?.. why doesn't it break at gap length as where it was created?..

I have tried looking for answers into the Internet but no luck.. perhaps anyone has an explanation with this or any theories why.
does the voltage of the system Increases?..

I've Noticed This happens when working with AC currents and Shorting the Secondary terminals.. (drive a flyback with a ZVS or mazilli driver and short the terminals and pull it away)
When the spark kicks in at certain Gap Length, whenever you pull it away, It tends to keep the Plasma Alive until the point where the terminals are too far away and breaks..

This question was raised due to the fact that I've learned that this was a problem back in the Old days of Power Generation with AC, that It was killing linesmen whenever the switch breaks and or causes explosion due to excessive accumulation of power, and was later resolved by grounding one of the terminals.

I'm not sure if It was AC power generation or DC, If I have mixed things up please inform me.

[spacecase0]

not sure if this is what you are looking for, but I hope it is

the resistance of plasma is much lower than regular air,
so it can travel quite a way without breaking the arc
also it creates heat, so it will tend to rise on its own
it will also get bent by magnetic fields (tesla used magnets to bend the plasma to make a longer path and break the arc faster)

I have a high power 50 ohm resistor that has terminals plated in gold,
I use to draw out a spark with it using 120VAC power, and it acts about how I thought it would with the heat making it rise and the magnetic fields bending it

edit:
forgot to say that the plasma is also moved with blowing air (just like the heat makes it rise),
so a fan also quenches a spark gap as well

[ricards]

hi spacecase,
thank you for the reply but unfortunately this does not answer my question, to be specific, If example I have a 3000v-5000v Power Supply and a spark gap of 1mm, assuming 3000v per mm Breakdown voltage of air, and I was able to create that spark... why is it when I adjust the Gap at 10mm the spark doesn't break.. which It should have been 30kv to create that gap, and my power supply is only 3kv-5kv.. If there was a breakdown voltage reduction because of humidity, It still doesn't add up..
Is there somehow an Increase in Power Supply Voltage?..
Or does the Ionized air takes a while to diminish and the plasma persist?..
I have my own theories but I would like to hear from others opinion ..

I have watched Eric Dollard Presentation on youtube "Origin of Energy Synthesis", and this Issue was a Topic of the discussion.. It was too technical for me to Understand.

even though I think he has an Explanation.. I was hoping someone could explain it In layman's term.

anyway thank you for the interest, I will be rewatching the video Over and over hoping somehow I would get what he means..

[spacecase0]

that initial breakdown voltage is just voltage to start with,
once the plasma is formed it is only a few ohms resistance and does not require much voltage to maintain it.

you make the arc through "air" and it continues as "plasma" they are very different
air has high resistance
plasma has low resistance

so is you measured the output voltage of your power supply, it would be high to start with, then would drop to nearly nothing after the plasma forms. it is the current that keeps it going and not so much the voltage.
so that is why you can draw it out a long way.

if want more impressive arcs, use a low voltage supply (a few hundred volts) that has quite a bit of current, then put a high voltage spike on the output so that the spark forms, so now you have a higher current system that will keep your plasma going. you only need the high voltage to start the arc, not to keep it going.

any better ?

[ricards]

That's an even better explanation thank you.

that initial breakdown voltage is just voltage to start with,
once the plasma is formed it is only a few ohms resistance and does not require much voltage to maintain it.

you make the arc through "air" and it continues as "plasma" they are very different
air has high resistance
plasma has low resistance

so is you measured the output voltage of your power supply, it would be high to start with, then would drop to nearly nothing after the plasma forms. it is the current that keeps it going and not so much the voltage.
so that is why you can draw it out a long way.

if want more impressive arcs, use a low voltage supply (a few hundred volts) that has quite a bit of current, then put a high voltage spike on the output so that the spark forms, so now you have a higher current system that will keep your plasma going. you only need the high voltage to start the arc, not to keep it going.

any better ?

[mikrovolt]

Electrical breakdown experiments on gas in a laboratory are described by a handful of useful physical laws and properties. A layman by definition is a person without professional or specialized knowledge in a particular subject.

We can examine more details from a specialized knowledge. Expanding concepts from a lab model into a broader discipline of study requires more thought (stretching the mind ). For example the subject of electrical breakdown with some other dielectric materials might sound like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NTPtd7uaJM

Besides Dollard and beyond the lab bench the question about the e-field being what and where should not be assumed to be the same as the lab equipment alone. The electric universe is another theory that could have more implications. Other ways to describe interaction with fields use aetheric means.