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Re: Spark Gap Gasses Experiment
>Date: Sun, 30 Aug 1998 19:21:18 -0600
>Subject: Spark Gap Gasses Experiment
>Original Poster: Terry Fritz <terryf-at-verinet-dot-com>
>
>Hi All,
>
> I was working with my primary circuit today and a simple static gap. I
>was blowing different gases across the gap to see what would happen. The
>results were very interesting. The scope photos of the primary voltage
>ringdown with various gasses are at:
>
>www.peakpeak-dot-com/~terryf/tesla/misc/
>
>The scope was hooked across the primary cap with a fiber-optic high voltage
>probe. The variac setting, gap width, etc. were all the same for each
>picture. Only the gas flowing into the gap was different. The scale is
>2kV/div in all photos.
<snip>
> I am not sure this is real useful but it is interesting none the less.
I would tend to agree that the freon experiment wasn't that useful
due to the toxicity, but the argon results could be useful if the
gap is opened up so the firing voltage is the same as in air. If the
losses in the primary and the quench are the same or better, it may
be reasonable to shield the gap with argon. This would eliminate
gap fouling. I recall paying about $50 for 249 cubic feet, so the
gas is not that expensive if bought in moderate volume. With the
reduce maintenance that an inert gas would allow, enclosing the
spark gap and filling the enclosure with argon would be another
possibility.
Jim Monte
>
>Terry Fritz
>