On 8/25/13 4:23 PM, Derek, Extreme Electronics wrote:
My thought is that the wood provides a reservoir of salt to feed the arc
a vapour of the chemical.
With a metal breakout the chemical is quickly burnt away, with the
exception of sodium which is so reactive small amounts last for ages
even on metal breakouts.
Another supposition is that the arc needs to form through the vapour,
again the wood provides a much larger cloud, just having the dry
chemical at the breakout isn't very effective.
Derek
Hmm.. that sounds interesting.. It never worked well when I just sprayed stuff on the topload. As you say, it colors, then goes away.
I wonder if a fiberglass or asbestos wick, or a porous ceramic would work. You could have something like a porous ceramic crucible or bottle that keeps the surface wet, or something.
Or one of those ultransonic mist generators. You could make a TC with colored sparks that have changing colors..
Folks have done the blow a stream of argon or metal filings, to very spectacular effect.
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