Re: Single vs Twin TCs

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Barton B. Anderson by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <tesla123-at-pacbell-dot-net>

Hi Steve -

I've pasted a post from Bert Hickman which should be interesting to you
(it's at the bottom).

Take care,
Bart

Tesla list wrote:

> Original poster: "S & J Young by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>"
<youngs-at-konnections-dot-net>
>
> Hi list,
>
> A twin TC is alleged to be more efficient than a single TC.  That is, for
> the same power, a twin allegedly can develop a longer streamer between the
> toroids than a single coil can to the air or ground.  Can someone explain
> exactly why?  Is it more than the idea that two smaller diameter primaries
> might transfer energy more efficiently to the secondaries than one larger
> primary to one secondary?  I suspect the explanation is more related to what
> is going on in the air between the toroids.  Your thoughts?
>
> --Steve

These are some very interesting observations! I'd propose the following
reasons:
Leaders (the bright, hot spark channels) are actually being fed
displacement current by multitudes of dimmer, bright blue colored
streamers. These diffusely glowing "cold" streamers extend far beyond the
tips of the brighter leaders, and they are constantly conveying charge
between the high fields at the tips of the leaders and the surrounding
regions of lower potential. However, streamer formation and conduction is
highly dependent on the local E-fields "seen" at the very tips of the
leaders, and these fields are a function of the distribution of charges
in
the nearby air. In a bipolar system it's very likely that the presence of
local space charges from the streamer tips of one resonator "feed"
significantly more current into the streamer tips of the opposite
resonator
since they are of opposite polarity. The resulting local E-fields seen at
the streamer tips are significantly greater and the degree of charge
transfer via cold streamer discharges between the two is greatly
enhanced.

The combination of stronger E-fields at leader tips, and greater
streamer-to-treamer charge transfer between resonators in a bipolar
system
should result in enhanced streamer and leader propagation as compared to
an
isolated resonator where leader tips only "see" a far-end potential of
ground. Enhanced avalanche breakdown, higher streamer currents, and
longer
leaders should result when the resonators are located close enough so
that
they favorably impact each other's E-fields at leader tips. Since the
dimmer streamer "glow" extends considerably past the tips of the leaders
and these streamers provide displacement current flow to support the
leaders, anything which benefits streamer growth or increases streamer
current will also tend to enhance leader growth and maintenance. This
improvement should be observed even when the resonators are far enough
apart so that the leaders are prevented from connecting. If we move the
resonators far enough apart, the leader length of each resonator would
decrease to that of an isolated resonator that's driven at HALF the total
input power.

A further REDUCTION in leader length should be observed if the resonators
are driven with the SAME phasing since E-fields at the leader tips of one
resonator are reduced by the presence of the other resonator. A streamer
trying to grow towards the opposing resonator would, in effect, be trying
to "swim upstream" from an E-field standpoint. Because streamer growth
and
current flow are considerably reduced, so are the leaders that head
between
the two resonators. Leader length between two similarly phased resonators
is thus considerably shorter than it would otherwise be with a
stand-alone
resonator.

Sort of makes sense, doesn't it?

Best regards,

-- Bert --
--
Bert Hickman
Stoneridge Engineering
Email:    bert.hickman-at-aquila-dot-net
Web Site: http://www.teslamania-dot-com