Familiarize with the use of electrical arc

How to familiarize with the operation and immediate effects of AC electrical arc generators for aesthetic purposes.

Since the use of electrical arcs sometimes seems quite daunting at the very beginning, this video will guide you through the basics in the operation of Voltaic arc for aesthetic applications. So the main purpose of the experiments you are about to watch is for you to learn the basic principles, so that, with enough practice, you will gain the confidence you require to then start to apply these basic principles for aesthetic purposes. For convenience, the test subjects are: chicken wings, beef steaks and chicken legs, found at any local butcher.

As you will see in this video the carbonisation effects of AC electrical arcing (or also referred to as plasma) are dependent on three main factors:

→ How long the arc has been applied for at any point

→ The power output of the specific device you are using

→ When the voltaic arc is applied in spray mode, the speed of movement of the electrode while the arc takes place.

In this video we will show you the basics of the "spot operation" and the "Spray operation". These two modalities of operation are the two fundamental ways of using, voltaic arc for aesthetic purposes.

For the purposes of the type of device we are using in this demonstration, and ease of operation, if you are right-handed, grab the device as if it is a large pen in this way. This way if you are left-handed.

Position the bottom of your palm on a stable hard surface, be it the forehead of your client or any other hard and stable surface available on your client's body. This will allow you the maximum degree of control of operation by simply moving your wrist in this way. Often, during the first attempt on using an electrical arc generator, people tend to touch the skin (or surface) with the tip of the electrode. As you can see, at very low power, this has no or very little effect on the test meat or the skin. The best way to practice and learn how to generate the arc with this particular device is to increase the power setting of the device and slowly moving the tip of the electrode closer to the surface until the arc takes place. This exercise will help you familiarise with the way voltaic arcs are initiated.

With this portable device, operated at minimum power, there is very little effect if the tip of the electrode touches the working surface or skin. Generally, in order to generate the arc, the electrode has to be kept at a minimum distance from the skin before the arc takes place. With this battery operated device, when set at very low power and the electrode touches the skin or any particular surface, the arc extinguishes and there will be little effects on the skin or the soft tissue (ie mole or benign skin lesion).

For the sake of this exercise, set the equipment power setting at a high enough level so that it is easy for you to generate the arc. Then slowly decrease the distance between the tip of the electrode and the surface. While you are slowly decreasing the distance, at a certain point the spark will take place (see the Paschen Law). In order to extinguish the arc simply increase the distance again. You will notice that the higher the power setting of the device the wider the minimum distance required to generate the arc, conversely the lower the power setting the closer the tip of the electrode needs to be in order to start generating the spark.

The following experiment is meant for you to understand why (with this particular portable device) it is recommended to place your other hand on the client's body while you are applying the AC voltaic arc. With this particular battery-powered device, in this experiment, set the output power at maximum level. Start trying to generate the arc but keep the other hand away from the meat. Now as the arc is generated touch the meat with the other hand. Notice how the arc increases in power as you touch the meat with the other hand, conversely the power is much lower when you do not touch the meat with the other hand. This is because when  you touch the meat with the other hand the high frequency current has an extra low resistance path to earth which decreases the overall resistance it encounters therefore increasing the power of the arc and hence the carbonisation effects.

This mode of operation is mainly used for skin tightening for aesthetic purposes.

Now that we have practiced the fundamental exercise which allows to generate voltaic arcs, we can start practicing the simplest of the methods used in aesthetics. The "spot operation". This type of operation is normally used for skin tightening. Please note that other methods are also suitable for the same applications, however, the spot operation is generally very effective and easy to use for skin tightening purposes. Because this is only an exercise, in order to familiarize with this technique set the equipment at any given power level which allows you ease of operation. In this video we have used the highest possible power setting to demonstrate the principle. When you will be applying the "spot mode" or "spot operation" for aesthetic purposes, the power levels will generally be far lower.

First of all apply very short bursts in different areas as shown here. Stop and look at the effects on the chicken skin. As you will see, the effects on the chicken skin are hardly noticeable.

Then move to another area and apply the arc for approximately one second, two seconds, three seconds, six seconds and finally ten seconds. Observe the effects. So now as you can see, the longer you keep the arc on, the more the carbonation effects at each spot. So the longer the arc is applied the larger and deeper the effects of the voltaic arc.  So with this exercise we have learned how the carbonation or ablation effects are directly dependent on the duration of the exposure to the arc.

This mode of operation is preferred in aesthetics for:

→ Thermabrasion, for tattoo removal

→ Brown and age spots removal

→ Mild thermapeeling for localised skin tightening

→ Benign moles and Benign skin lesions removal and more

For ease of this exercise, the first time you practice the spray mode operation, set the equipment at maximum power and as soon as the spark is generated while keeping the electrode at constant distance from the surface of the chicken skin (or meat) make a sweeping movement while keeping the arc on. The power will be set high only for this exercise to allow you ease of practice. As you gain confidence at high power levels, then practice at lower power levels, down to the minimum setting. Normally the power levels used for aesthetic treatments, with exception for mole removal, by using voltaic arc are very low.

In this last exercise you will see  that by increasing or decreasing the speed of the sweeping movement  the carbonisation effects vary, even if the power setting of the equipment remains unchanged. What you will notice, is that the higher your sweeping speed, the more superficial the carbonisation effects, whereas as the sweeping speed decreases the carbonisation effects penetrate deeper into the skin of the chicken or meat surface.

In order to later move to utilising voltaic arcs for aesthetic applications, practice on your own by using all the different power levels  and spend some time practicing and having fun drawing whatever you wish on the meat.

As you have seen in this video the effects produced by the electric arc are directly related to the way the equipment is used and the arc applied. In aesthetic treatments, the final results will be dependent on the way you perform each procedure. Therefore, if you purchased a voltaic arc generator for aesthetic purposes, the best advice is to start practicing as shown in this video. Practice makes it perfect and there is nothing called as too much practice. So repeat all these exercises on your own and have fun.