Plasma Jet Ignition

[Chris Conlon]

At 06:50 PM 2/21/99 GMT, Robert Harris wrote:

>Re-reading my Heywood and have become re-in-love with the concept of plasma
>jet ignition.   Essentially, a normal CD ignition fires the plug in a cavity
>connected to the main chamber by an orifice.  Once the arc is established, a
>second low voltage high current capacitive discharge is routed into the
arc.  

Hmm. Electrically, this is exactly the kind of ignition I'm trying to
build. Or rather, trying to get a buddy of mine who's already doing a
DIY coil-per-plug system, to try and build for me. My plate's too damn
full already. I figured, why should you have to choose between a short,
hot spark and a longer, less hot one? But I have not read the book you
mention, guess I'd better try and get a copy.

It's a lot like building a power supply for a flash lamp, which detail
it took me embarassingly long to realize.

Do you have info or speculations on the benefits of just the electrical
aspect of this idea, vs. just the mechanical aspects. (the cavity and
orifice)  In other words, does either part of the system get you any
gain over a normal setup? I'm just wondering about the mechanisms
involved.

   Chris C.