Sonca Nguyen

Ph.D. Candidate
B.S.: Aeronautics and Astronautics 2004, University of Washington
M.S.Eng.: Aerospace Engineering 2006, University of Michigan

sonca@umich.edu

My research project is to experimentally investigate an unconventional method of hydrogen production by dissociating water molecules in a radio-frequency (RF) plasma source. The electron temperature is expected to be of a few electron volts and the density can be in a range between 10¹⁷ to 10¹⁹ m^-3 depending on which mode (capacitive, inductive, or helicon) the plasma operates in. Consequently, highly reactive species in the plasma including electrons, ions, and radicals are speculated to enhance the water dissociation rate. This experiment is performed in a vacuum facility at the Plasmadynamics and Electric Propulsion Laboratory (PEPL) at the University of Michigan. We have demonstrated the capability of dissociating water molecules in a RF plasma. The next step is to optimize this process and to obtain a kinetic code to understand the mechanisms of water vapor dissociation in a plasma source.