Re: Water As Dielectric

To: "'Tesla List'" <tesla-at-poodle.pupman-dot-com>
Subject: Re: Water As Dielectric
From: Tesla List <tesla-at-stic-dot-net>
Date: Sun, 9 Nov 1997 13:19:59 -0600
Approved: tesla-at-stic-dot-net

From: 	Alfred C. Erpel[SMTP:aerpel-at-op-dot-net]
Sent: 	Sunday, November 09, 1997 9:19 AM
To: 	'Tesla List'; Tesla List
Subject: 	Re: Water As Dielectric

AE>>    What is water's dielectic strength? I did a search on the internet
for
AE>>    this value and the only thing I kept finding was it's dielectric
constant.

JL>>Water's dielectric strength, at DC, is zero. It is a conductor. However,
for very fast pulses, water is often used as the dielectric in transmission
lines or low inductance capacitors. The reason for this is that water is a
"slow" conductor, that is, it takes some time for the ions to migrate and
carry the current. For a pulse of less than a microsecond, there isn't
appreciable current flow.<<

    Thanks for the response.
    I was speaking of distilled water which I understand has no ions in
solution which are the cause of conduction. No ions, no conduction, is this
correct?