Calculations of the parameters of the air plasma produced by an electron beam in the channel of an MHD generator with a nonequilibrium conductivity

Approximate analytic expressions for calculating the electron density in both steady and unsteady plasmas produced by pulsed electron beams are derived and proved to agree well with numerical calculations. It is shown that the algorithm for calculating the parameters of a nonequilibrium plasma in the channel of an MHD plasma generator depends on the type of generator. The effect of the magnetic field strength on the electron density and electric conductivity of the air plasma produced by an electron beam in the channel of a Faraday MHD generator is investigated. The influence of the parameters of the flow and ionizer on the efficiency of an MHD generator with a nonequilibrium conductivity is analyzed.