PK-4 Science Activities in Micro-gravity

• Published in: Microgravity science and technology 2011-02, Vol.23 (2), p.169-171
• Main Authors: Fink, Martin A., Thoma, Markus H., Morfill, Gregor E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aerospace Technology and Astronautics; Classical and Continuum Physics; Discharge; Electrodes; Engineering; Fluid dynamics; Fluid flow; Fluids; International Space Station; Original Article; Parabolic flight; Shock waves; Solitons; Space Exploration and Astronautics; Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics
• ISSN: 0938-0108; 1875-0494
• DOI: 10.1007/s12217-010-9244-3

PK-4 is a multi-functional plasma discharge source. Two setups exist for operating plasma discharge experiments on parabolic flight campaigns as well as in laboratory. Another setup for use on the International Space Station ISS is planned. The plasma can be created by a dc-discharge as well as by rf-discharges, coupled inductively. There exist various possibilities to manipulate the introduced microparticles: mechanical (glass-nozzle), optical (high power laser), electrical (EM-pulse-electrode, rf-electrodes, polarity-switching) and thermal (heating coil) manipulation. Several different types of experiments have already been done with PK-4 in parabolic flights: Nozzle-Experiments (particle jets, transition between fluid and single particle behaviour), Lane-Formation (cloud collisions), Laser driven shear flow, Shock waves and solitons (excitation of shock waves applying electric pulses using the EM-electrode), String-Fluids (electro-rheological fluids), and many more.