Re: Bang Size

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

Original poster: "Jim Lux" <jimlux-at-earthlink-dot-net> 

Bang size is the energy in each firing of the spark gap. With a static gap,
set fairly far apart, you'll get one firing per half cycle of the line
frequency (i.e. 120 bangs/second in the U.S.).  With rotary gaps, with a
traiggered gap, or with a static gap set closer, you can get multiple gap
firings per half cycle.
The energy, in Joules (aka WattSeconds) per bang averages the input power
divided by the bang frequency (bps - breaks per second, bangs per second),
so... 360W into the system: 60Hz power: 120 bps -> 3 Joules/bang.

A CW coil (tube or solid state) is continuous and has no "bang", although a
cw coil run in "staccato" mode is pulsed, creating an effect similar to the
bangs of a spark gap coil.

The actual HV pulse from any one spark gap firing (bang) lasts only a few
tens or hundreds of microseconds, so the peak power is quite high (3 Joules
dissipated in 100 microseconds is 30kW)

There's sort of a tradeoff between lots of small bangs and relatively fewer
large bangs.  The relation between bang energy/rate and spark growth is
subject to a lot of discussions, and the archives are full of them.


----- Original Message -----
From: "Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
To: <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
Sent: Friday, January 16, 2004 5:16 PM
Subject: Bang Size


 > Original poster: "Luke" <Bluu-at-cox-dot-net>
 >
 > What exactly is meant by BANG SIZE?
 > I see it referred to as being separate from arc length.
 > Someone care to fill me in?
 >
 > Luke Galyan
 > Bluu-at-cox-dot-net
 >
 >
 >