Charge to Mass Distributions in Electrostatic Sprays

The dependence of the charge to mass ratio or specific charge of the spray stream on fluid and automization parameters in electrostatic spraying of various solvents and paints has been investigated. In addition, atomized paint particle sizes have been analyzed. It has been found that an optimum value of fluid conductivity exists at 2 μho/cm where the specific charge of the spray stream exhibits a maximum. From the particle size distribution and from the dependence of the specific charge of the spray stream on conductivity it has been concluded that the basic spray droplet charging mechanism is due to the breakup of a charged liquid surface, while corona discharge does not appear to play a significant role in the charging of the particles.