Electric arc device for heating gases

Claim 1

AN ELECTRIC ARC DEVICE FOR HEATING GASES COMPRISING: A CHAMBER HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS; A PLURALITY OF ANNULAR ELECTRODES EACH BEING SYMMETRICAL ABOUT A SEPARATE LONGITUDINAL AXIS, SAID ELECTRODE BEING DISPOSED WITHIN SAID CHAMBER, SAID LONGITUDINAL AXES OF SAID ELECTRODES DEFINING A PLANE AND ALL INTERSECTING AT SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF SAID CHAMBER, SAID ELECTRODE AXES BEING EQUALLY SPACED ABOUT SAID CHAMBER AXIS; MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID ELECTRODES TO ESTABLISH ARCS BETWEEN ADJACENTLY DISPOSED ELECTRODES; MEANS FOR COOLING SAID ELECTRODES; MEANS IN PROMIXITY TO SAID ELECTRODES TO PRODUCE A MAGNETIC FIELD AT EACH ELECTRODE, SAID MAGNETIC FIELD AT EACH ELECTRODE HAVING COMPONENTS PARALLEL AND TRANSVERSE TO THE AXIS OF THAT ELECTRODE AND A FLUX DENSITY INDEPENDENT OF ARC CURRENT, SAID FIELD CONTINUOUSLY ROTATING SAID ARCS ABOUT SAID ELECTRODES TO MINIMIZE ELECTRODE ABLATION; AND MEANS FOR ENABLING GASES TO PASS THROUGH SAID CHAMBER NEAR SAID ELECTRODES.