Re: Superconducting tesla coil...

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

Original poster: "Dr. Resonance" <resonance-at-jvlnet-dot-com> 


Plastic becomes very brittle even at zero degrees F.  You might crack your
coilform depending on its material.

Dr. Resonance

 >
 > LN2 == Milk as far as cost goes... $.50/liter... $100 gets you a big GP45
 > dewar (that's 45 gallons, folks)
 >
 >
 >
 >
 > >  But I'd want to be
 > >careful that my components have similar thermal expansions. Use something
 > >with a large theremal expansion coefficient as your winding on something
that
 > >doesn't, and you'll get broken/stretched wire as the wire shortens and
tenses
 > >up.
 >
 > Precisely the problem you'll have... particularly things that are plastic,
 > aren't when cooled to 77K...
 >
 >
 > >Other than that, you'll have to construct a vessel around the coil to
contain
 > >the LN2.
 >
 > Styrofoam is your friend... Those inexpensive plastic water coolers from
 > Home Depot work quite well to hold LN2.  However, seal up the hole where
 > the spout is at the bottom before filling.. if it starts to leak, you'll
 > never be able to patch it.  Putty or epoxy works fine.
 >
 > I'd try using something like sonotube in a larger sonotube (or 5 gal
 > plastic buckets) with the space between filled with "foam in a can" or
 > expanded vermiculite/perlite
 >
 >
 >
 > >Reminds of an interesting reference from Ben Bova's Moonwar. They refer
to the
 > >mass driver as using "cryogenic aluminum" magnets rather than
 > >supercondcucting magnets. When was the book written; The first high-temp
 > >superconductor was created in the early 80's, right?
 >
 >
 > High power magnets have used LN2 cooling for many years.
 >
 >
 >
 >