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Re: Limiting Safety Gap Current
I made comments on this a number of months ago. A
safety gap across the primary gap is a BIG MISTAKE
it WILL cause destruction of the cap sooner or later.
A gap acrossed the cap sets up a very high frequency
high current circuit that is coupled to NOTHING and a
huge standing wave is set up. A inductive loading of the
circuit will simply lower the frequency of the circuit and
slightly lower the peak current, the energy will not be
dissipated in the reactance of the inductors but returned to
the cap. Some may disagree, but I've killed a lot of caps this
way, it is NOT the way to do it.
Mark Graalman
On Sat, 06 Feb 1999 14:57:44 -0700 Tesla List <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com> writes:
>Original Poster: "Thomas McGahee" <tom_mcgahee-at-sigmais-dot-com>
>
>Personally, I don't think using resistors to limit the
>safety gap current is the way to go. I would
>use an inductance in series with the safety gap. This
>would be much more effective, since a coil or choke
>is quite good at limiting the discharge current. In
>fact, that is what happens with your primary coil.
>
>Since the safety gap rarely fires anyhow, the choke coils
>wouldn't have to be all that large. You can add a core
>material such as iron or ferrite to increase inductance,
>but be aware that you will have just constructed a mini-
>induction heater. But hey, you have to dissipate the
>energy SOMEHOW, and an inductive load may just be the
>best way to do it.
>
>Hope this helps.
>Fr. Tom McGahee
>
>
>
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