Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland

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Seth Aulton
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Jul 20, 2017 1:02 pm
Real name: Seth Aulton

Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland

Post by Seth Aulton »

Hello all,

My name is Seth Aulton and I am a 3rd year Physics student at University of Maryland. It is my hope to build my own Fusor to advance my knowledge of nuclear physics and to gain a better understanding of the engineering behind design and construction of fusion reactors.

A little bit of background on my skills and experiences:
Apart from my in progress physics degree, I hold an AA in Engineering from a community college, and have been an aircraft propulsion mechanic for the Air National Guard/USAF for nearly 6 years now. I have extensive amateur experience in electronics, from PCB design, to micro-controller programming. Additionally I have owned and operated various 3D printers for over 5 years and have experience with CNC machining.

My current progress on my fusor is that I have conducted moderate research, reading a majority of posts in the FAQ and have begun a list of essential parts that I will need to buy, and construct myself. As my university has extensive facilities for nuclear engineering, I will likely be able to access a host of radiation detection equipment, vacuum pumps, and a high voltage generator. So far I have a few professors who are interested in advising me and they themselves have experience with similar fields.
Additionally I have begun to select parts for the vacuum vessel such as two steel hemispheres and the requisite conflat seals. Also to help with with construction, I have a experienced welding professional who will be able to weld and help with machining parts that I may need.

So yeah! I am so excited to talk and work with you all! Thanks in advance for any advice or responses!

P.S. I am super interested in Muon Catalyzed Fusion and would love to try and experiment around with it!
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Richard Hull
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Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2001 9:44 am
Real name: Richard Hull

Re: Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland

Post by Richard Hull »

Welcome to the fusor forums.

While this is not the area for theoretical or other issues. Muon catalyzed fusion requires Muons! Where are you going to get them??

We have had this discussion before. Muons don't exist, nor can they be made to exist unless you have voltages significant'y beyond 2 million volts. Even with a good amateur van de Graff this effort is not an amateur region. Lots of muons demand a decent current from the supply.
This is much like the amateur notion of P + B11 fusion. It is beyond the amateur.

Dreaming is allowed, but the reality of physical limits, claws its way into the picture. If the physical limits don't worry you, the monetary outlay will. This latter bit has brought many an amateur, would-be fusor fusioneer to a halt, and the D-D fusor is the easiest and least expensive, fusion on earth.

Richard Hull
Progress may have been a good thing once, but it just went on too long. - Yogi Berra
Fusion is the energy of the future....and it always will be
The more complex the idea put forward by the poor amateur, the more likely it will never see embodiment
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Dennis P Brown
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Joined: Sun May 20, 2012 10:46 am
Real name: Dennis Brown

Re: Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland

Post by Dennis P Brown »

Hello, and welcome. I too live in Maryland. Do consider a 2" diameter (or so) four-way cross rather then a chamber - voltage levels appear lower for similar fusion. Best of luck and do change your posting name from a handle to your real name - those are the rules.
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Bob Reite
Posts: 576
Joined: Sun Aug 25, 2013 9:03 pm
Real name: Bob Reite
Location: Wilkes Barre/Scranton area

Re: Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland

Post by Bob Reite »

I wonder if it's chamber size or just grid size? People with smaller chambers generally use proportionally smaller grids. Guess I'll have to build some more cylinder grids of different diameters and test them, trying to keep everything else equal.
The more reactive the materials, the more spectacular the failures.
The testing isn't over until the prototype is destroyed.
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Scott Moroch
Posts: 212
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 8:48 pm
Real name: Scott Moroch
Location: New Jersey

Re: Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland

Post by Scott Moroch »

Welcome to the forum Seth! I will be a freshman at the University of Maryland this fall with the intention of majoring in physics. In high school I built two operating fusors with a friend, Jack Rosky, and am currently working on a cyclotron. I attached pictures of the fusors I built.

Let me know if I can assist you in any way.

Best of luck!

Scott Moroch
Attachments
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"In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity"
-Albert Einstein
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