Gas measurement for air plasma generators

等离子体，电离气体，是继固体、液体和气体之后的第四种物质状态。太阳、极光和闪电都是自然的例子，而等离子体技术包括先进的硅蚀刻机、太空推进系统和核聚变反应堆。大气压等离子体技术可用于化学合成——打乱空气中的氮和氧分子，产生氮氧化物和臭氧。这模仿了雷击和大气的自然过程。这些空气衍生的活性气体——活性氧和活性氮（RONS）——具有抗菌、生物活性和化学作用。它们的潜在工业应用范围包括化工、卫生、农业、食品、生物工艺和医疗保健。第四州的使命是利用其获得专利的空气等离子体技术，使RONS的生化效益随时随地都能获得。由空气等离子体产生的ron之一，一氧化氮（化学式NO -不要与二氧化氮，NO2或氧化亚氮，N2O混淆）被科学家称为“奇迹分子”，因为它在动物，植物，真菌和微生物中具有惊人的重要和多样化的生物作用。NO几乎由人体的每个细胞产生，具有广泛的作用，包括抗菌/抗肿瘤作用，控制血液流动和伤口愈合。这一发现获得了1998年诺贝尔生理学/医学奖。一氧化氮是常规吸入药物，最近被研究作为COVID-19抢救疗法。许多基于一氧化氮的疗法目前正在开发中，但传统的一氧化氮来源的局限性-高压压缩气瓶和各种化学品-是在医疗保健和其他应用中广泛使用的障碍。目前，Fourth State将其便携式空气等离子发生器销售给转化研究人员（NOxLab研发产品）和第三方集成商/OEM （ModuNOx OEM解决方案）。这些产品为客户提供了一种简单、（成本）有效、安全和可持续的NO来源（和/或其他必要的RONS）。NOxLab研发产品的用户可以在实验室中快速为其预期的RONS应用建立正确的设置，然后通过ModuNOx OEM解决方案扩展到试点和全面部署。与国家物理实验室（NPL）的A4I项目直接建立在以前的合作基础上，旨在对第四州产品产生的RONS进行高精度测量。第四州和国家物理实验室之间的第一个项目在大流行期间通过“恢复计量”方案成功实施，最近在国家物理实验室的网站上发表了关于该项目的案例研究。

Plasma, ionised gas, is the fourth state of matter after solid, liquid and gas. The sun, the aurora and lightning are all natural examples, while plasma technologies include advanced silicon etching machines, space propulsion systems and nuclear fusion reactors.Atmospheric pressure plasma technologies can be used for chemical synthesis - scrambling molecules of nitrogen and oxygen in air, to produce nitrogen oxides and ozone. This mimics natural processes in lightning strikes and the atmosphere.These air-derived reactive gases - reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS) - have antimicrobial, bioactive and chemical effects. Their potential industrial applications span chemicals, hygiene, agriculture, food, bioprocesses and healthcare. Fourth State's mission is to make the biochemical benefits of RONS accessible - anywhere, anytime - with just air and electricity, using its patented Air Plasma technology.One of the RONS generated by air-plasma, nitric oxide (chemical formula NO - not to be confused with nitrogen dioxide, NO2, or nitrous oxide, N2O) has been called a "miracle molecule" by scientists, due to its surprisingly important, diverse biological roles in animals, plants, fungi and microbes. NO is produced by almost every cell in the human body for a wide range of effects, including antimicrobial/anti-tumour action, control of blood flow and wound healing. Its discovery was awarded the 1998 Nobel prize in Physiology/Medicine. NO is used routinely as an inhaled drug, and was recently investigated as a COVID-19 rescue therapy. Numerous NO-based therapies are currently in development, but the limitations of conventional sources of NO - high pressure compressed gas cylinders and various chemicals - are a barrier to widespread use in healthcare and other applications.Fourth State currently sells its portable air plasma generators to translational researchers (NOxLab R&D products) and third party integrators/OEMs (ModuNOx OEM solutions). These products provide customers with an easy, (cost-)effective, safe and sustainable source of NO (and/or other RONS if desired). Users of NOxLab R&D products can quickly establish correct settings for their intended RONS application in a laboratory, before scaling up to pilot- and full-scale deployment through ModuNOx OEM solutions.This A4I project with the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) builds directly on previous collaborations, aimed at high-precision measurement of RONS generated by Fourth State's products. The first project between Fourth State and NPL was successfully delivered during the pandemic, through the Measurement for Recovery (M4R) programme - a case study on this project was recently published on NPL's website.