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Re: alternative static spark gaps???
I have not got the faintest idea of where to pick up an arclamp :)
The traditional arclamp electrodes were solid carbon. The gouging
electrodes are hollow, allowing compressed air to be spat out from both
electrodes at the point of arcing. This may help a lot in extinguishing the
arc. Or it may not. :)
This may be of interest to those with the time, equipment and the
willingness to experiment :)
Regards,
MichaelT
*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********
>
>Michael,
>
>Try it! I suspect that a potential problem with using carbon electrodes
>is that a carbon arc, once formed, tends not to extinguish very rapidly
>since the electrode tips become incandescent and the reduced thermal
>conductivity of the carbon prevents quick cool-down. A spark gap for a
>Tesla Coil needs to be able to extinguish once most of the energy in the
>primary circuit has been transfered to the secondary - this is called
>quenching. If the electrodes overheat (BTW, this can occur with tungsten
>electrodes as well), the ability of the gap to quench is reduced. This
>permits the gap to reignite and transfer energy from the secondary back
>into the primary, reducing overall performance of the coil. However,
>your mileager may vary! :^)
>
>-- Bert --
>
>Tesla List wrote:
>>
>> Original Poster: "Michael Thomson" <miketz-at-cqnet-dot-com.au>
>>
>> I was out on a mine site today, and had to get some gouging done, and had a
>> brain-wave...
>>
>> For those that don't know, Gouging is the electric welder version of oxy
>> cutting, using hollow carbon rods instead of steel rods. (It is also
>> extremely loud!)
>>
>> Would a setup like the old arc-lamps (self adjusting spark-gap with
>> sacrificial electrodes) using these rods be of too high a resistance for
>> coil use?
>>
>> Regards,
>> MichaelT