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Re: Van de Graaff (Toroid Design)
Tesla List wrote:
> I've been in the lower section of the Boston VDGRF. They are using what
> appears to be a leather belt at present approx 4 feet wide. There is also
> a heater system to drive out the mositure near the lower upward run of the
> belt.
The present machine really uses belts made of a latex/cloth material.
The original machine had, in each of the two columns, three belts.
Two for charge transport and one for power transmission, with a motor
below and a generator above. The original belts were made from
electrical insulation paper 0.017" thick and 47" wide. There was
air conditioning inside the columns, so to say that the belts operated
in open air is really not correct.
A detailed description of the machine is in the paper:
"The design, operation, and performance of the Round Hill electrostatic
generator," by L. C. Van Atta, L. Northrup, C. M. Van Atta, and
R. J. Van de Graaff, Physical Review, Vol. 49, pp. 761-776, May 1936.
The paper describes in detail the charging system, efficiency,
measurement problems and techniques, etc.
Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz