Hello, my name is Brandon Dean and I am building a fusor for a senior design project at Purdue University Calumet. God willing I hope to be kicking back counting neutrons by Thanksgiving. I have already excepted the fact that I will be making sacrifices in my design due to time mostly. What I do have is a decent budget which maybe be supplemented by a few small grants. I wish I knew where to begin.
I will be doing this project solo, and intend on it being a stepping stone to energy research in grad school.
I have a rough idea on a chamber design, most likely being excessively large. I will use 10"-16" 304L pipe and fab/weld conflat flanges on the ends. This seems "simpler" than turning 2 hemispheres from stock from the perspective of the programming and machine time needed, although well within my capabilities. A major concern of mine is surface finish on the flange faces, I may have to outsource the polishing. Also, the cylindrical chamber has the disadvantage of having more surface area that needs to be vacuum sealed. I am not with out doubt that I am overlooking more present issues.
My overall intent is 80% learning and 20% experimentation. My reasoning for making the chamber so large is to make this chamber useful for other experiments, but also for neutron/He3 detection and x-ray transparency.
Well no need to flood the forums. I hope I have clearly stated my intentions and made my naivety known. I am off to write up some grant apps, and organize some references. I hope to start on the chamber next week, and would be very interested in trading equipment for greenbacks.
Fusion in 10 weeks
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Re: Fusion in 10 weeks
Either chamber type will work. A sphere is perhaps electrostatically favorable given the operation of the fusor however a cylinder is fine.
10 weeks is pretty ambitious but should be possible. I started last february with hopes of getting neutrons by May for the school science fair and am just now starting to get counts. It's always a lot longer a task than it seems from the start unless you shell out serious money. Start looking for a power supply from the start because that can be a very expensive part if you don't have time to scrounge for one.
Good luck!
10 weeks is pretty ambitious but should be possible. I started last february with hopes of getting neutrons by May for the school science fair and am just now starting to get counts. It's always a lot longer a task than it seems from the start unless you shell out serious money. Start looking for a power supply from the start because that can be a very expensive part if you don't have time to scrounge for one.
Good luck!
Re: Fusion in 10 weeks
If you're going to DIY the chamber, you may want to downsize just a wee bit. New Conflat seem to run up in price exponentially. The flange money would probably be better spent on a neutron detector or really beefy PSU.
Anyways, Good Luck!!! Fusion in 10 weeks is quite the challenge. Getting the gas itself may take 10 weeks.
Anyways, Good Luck!!! Fusion in 10 weeks is quite the challenge. Getting the gas itself may take 10 weeks.
Re: Fusion in 10 weeks
The University can probably help in obtaining the Deuterium.