Patent ID: 8361276

Claim:
Apparatus for atmospheric-pressure plasma discharge processing of material, comprising in combination: a first electrode having a planar surface not covered with dielectric material; a plurality of spaced-apart parallel tubes not covered with dielectric material forming a second planar electrode, each tube of said plurality of tubes having an outer surface spaced apart a first chosen distance from the surface of said first electrode, and a second chosen distance from the outer surface of an adjacent tube thereto; an rf power supply in electrical contact with either of said first electrode or each tube of said plurality of tubes for providing rf power to said first electrode or to each tube of said plurality of tubes, the unpowered electrode of said first electrode or each tube of said plurality of tubes being placed in electrical contact with a ground electrical potential; means for cooling each tube of said plurality of tubes to a chosen temperature; means for flowing a gas into the space between said first electrode and said second electrode and out of the space between said first electrode and said second electrode between the spaced-apart outer surfaces of each tube of said plurality of tubes; and means for moving said material at a third chosen distance from and parallel to said second electrode on the opposite side of said second electrode from the flat surface of said first electrode; whereby an atmospheric pressure plasma is generated between said first electrode and said second electrode.