Newsgroups: sci.physics.plasma
From news@cebaf.gov Thu Jan 4 12:35:17 1996
From: benesch@cebaf.gov (Jay Benesch)
Organization: CEBAF
Subject: Re: Conduction dependency on pressure and temperature

In article <4cgk0j$2k7@mojo.eng.umd.edu>, Maren Thiele
<thiele@sun0.urz.uni-heidelberg.de> wrote:

> I am working on ignition of gaseous mixtures. The
> electrical conductivity of gases depends strongly
> on temperature and pressure.
> Is there any standard literature where one can find
> tables for different gases, not just air?
>
I was unable to reply by email - daemon said user unknown at
Heidelberg end. So I'll post.

I don't think the question is well posed. The electrical conductivity of
gases is zero - there are no conduction electrons. Depending on shielding
from cosmic rays and other sources, some ionization will occur. The
conductivity of the electron-gas binary mixture is dependent on density,
pressure, ionization coefficients versus energy, electric field, etc.
For that question, the following may help.

S. Brown, Basic Data of Plasma Physics, recently reprinted by the American
Institute of Physics (AIP), is still one of the best sources for all the
relevant constants.

Partially Ionized Gases, M. Mitchner and Charles Kruger, 1973, Wiley Press.

Earl McDaniel and Edward Mason, The Mobility and diffusion of ions in
Gases, 1973, Wiley

A. von Engel, Ionized Gases, also reprinted by the AIP in the "American
Vacuum Society (AVS) Classics" series.

----
I left plasma physics in 1983, so most of my references are older.
However, an ex-boss is the editor of the AVS Classics series, started when
he was president of AVS. He started it because no one has been writing
these sorts of books for 20-40 years, and all were out of print. They are
selling well. More recent gas discharge books tend to focus on plasmas
for semiconductor processing.
--
Jay Benesch, Senior Staff Scientist
CEBAF - Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility
12000 Jefferson Ave, Newport News, VA 23606, USA