electric and magnetic forces (was Re: oil dielectric)

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

Original poster: "Jim Lux by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <jimlux-at-earthlink-dot-net>

> > results would be catastrophic. When the dielectric of water
> > breaks down, particles of water are thrown off with such force
> > they can penetrate metal sheeting.
>
>
>     I'd be interested in a documented case.
>     Decomposition of water leaves gaseous products, which
>     will drift away, the remaining water is
>     noncombustible.

Doesn't decompose (in the explosion sense).. what DOES happen is that some
of it boils, is ionized, expands rapidly (mostly thermal expansion) driving
the rest out in particles...  No special modifications at atomic level
needed, just ordinary thermal expansion

>
> >     It compares quite exactly.  It is much more widely used.
>
> Well not exactly, magnetic repulsion is used to run electric motors,
> electric repulsion can be used to deform quarters beyond there plastic
> limits causeing them to shrink to the size of a nickle. No amount of
magnetic
> force can do that.

Nope.. it's magnetic forces doing the deformation (called, oddly enough,
magneforming, by the way)... The current induces a magnetic field, etc...

(Yes, of course there IS an electric field and hence an electrostatic force,
but it's orders of magnitude less)


>
> > Agreed, the arc would be near light speeds.
>
>
>     Arcs propagate a LOT slower than light.  (I'd have
>     to dig for an exact number).  Fast, slower than light.
>
> I right off hand cant think of anything faster than light. However
> electricity moves near the speed of light. My point was that arcs are
faster
> than thermocouples, so in fact i agree with you.

streamer propagation in air is probably around 0.1 speed of light..