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FAQ - forget the shape...What about fusor size!

Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2015 4:04 am
by Richard Hull
No one person has tried the exact same volume is several different shapes and applied the exact same pressure to each with the exact same voltage and current with a neutron detector at a fixed distance from all. Thus, no one here can say one physical form of fusor will outperform another. Looking at the fusioneer listing, all manner of chambers have been used. Large, small, spherical, cylindrical, conflat "tee"s and 6 ways. All fused.

The classic sphere was a copy of the original Farnsworth/Hirsch systems and nothing more. We now know that it is not mandatory.

Size is an issue, however, as we have seen fusion at larger neutron levels requires a certain volume beyond a small 2.75" CF "tee", with a complete but bold effort fail in a 1.3" Tee.

By the same token, huge volumes require top flight sealing, large investments and much larger and higher CFM and liter/sec in the fore and high vac pumps and the expenditure of large volumes of expensive deuterium gas flows, that will, ultimately, be vented to air.

A two to three liter volume will be the best for most amateur efforts and experiments and will keep the costs down across the board. Beyond 6 liters, the money flows out in torents. Do not come down with the Tokamak-ITER (T-I syndrome)..... Bigger is just bigger, not better, just more costly. Your output will probably go up linearly with volume, voltage and current, but costs would probably scale up geometrically

The choice is not just the shape of your fusor, but size and this is based on wallet size and the ultimate goal of the would-be fusioneer.

Richard Hull