Introduction of a new atmospheric pressure plasma device and application on tomato seeds

Abstract

We designed new atmospheric pressure plasma device, to explore appropriate voltage of plasma treatment that promote traits and yield of to-mato, tomato seeds were treated by plasma at 4760 to 6800 V, and traits and yield of tomato were observed. The results showed that the ef-fects of different voltage plasma treatments on seed germination were not the same. The bloom times, the height, the caulis, the extent of the plants and the average weight, length，diameter of each fruit in the seven treatment groups from 4760 to 6800 V were increased distinctly. The tomato yields of seven different plasma voltage treated groups were increased than the un-treated (CK). In most indexes of our tests, ef-fects of (5440 ~ 6120 V) plasma voltage treat-ments were better than of other voltages, the best was 6120 V plasma voltage treatment. So the tomato yield increase and the most the botany properties of the tomato are improved. The discharges were not uniform and the pow-ers were lower in low voltages (4760 ~ 5100V), and the discharge powers were higher in high voltages (6460 ~ 6800V). There was a step un-altered violet blue light from 5440V to 6120V, it was nearly uniform discharges, it maybe due to the energy of the electron and the active air particles in the plasma increasing with atmos-pheric plasma voltage adding, more electric charges are produced per unit time and cannot be neutralized at once, which can strengthen the reaction between the active air particles and seeds. The active air particles and ultraviolet radiation can penetrate into the capsule of the seeds，accelerate to decompose the inner nu-triment of the seeds, reduce relative penetrabil-ity of cell velum, improve the activities of the root of the tomato seedling. Test data of fruit yield of the tomato are consistent with the sta-tistical regressive line.