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#1
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Mercury as an antenna?
Forget about the feasibility of this question for the moment.
Could a column of mercury inside a tube of glass be used as an antenna? -- 73, Cecil, W5DXP -----= Posted via Newsfeeds.Com, Uncensored Usenet News =----- http://www.newsfeeds.com - The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! -----== Over 100,000 Newsgroups - 19 Different Servers! =----- |
#2
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"Cecil Moore" wrote in message ... Forget about the feasibility of this question for the moment. Could a column of mercury inside a tube of glass be used as an antenna? -- 73, Cecil, W5DXP Yes, of course, but make mine copper, please. Material Resistivity r(ohm m) Silver 1.59 Copper 1.68 Aluminum 2.65 Tungsten 5.6 Iron 9.71 Platinum 10.6 Lead 22 Mercury 98 Incidentally, Keith Monk used to make a tone arm with mercury contacts. (For those of you who don't recognize the term "tone arm" it was a device used in the playing of "records".) 73 H. NQ5H |
#3
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Cecil Moore wrote:
Forget about the feasibility of this question for the moment. Could a column of mercury inside a tube of glass be used as an antenna? -- 73, Cecil, W5DXP OK Cecil I'll bite. Yep! [I think there may be a Troll here :-) ] Mercury is a metal, albeit a dangerous one. It has a resistivity about 55 times that of copper. To a first approximation it's thermal coefficients are within a factor of 2 or less. It's location in the electrochemical series indicates that the relative potential between copper and mercury of -0.4546 volts would be subject to corrosive effects. Coupling RF to the column would require indirect coupling such as inductive. Why in Heaven would you or anyone want to do it? [I think there may be a Troll here :-) ] Deacon Dave Glass is an insulator and has dielectric properties. My conclusion: Yep! But it would have much higher losses than copper |
#4
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On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 20:33:40 GMT, Dave Shrader
wrote: Could a column of mercury inside a tube of glass be used as an antenna? OK Cecil I'll bite. Yep! [I think there may be a Troll here :-) ] Bite? SHF antenna arrays in a set of fillings? |
#5
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On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 20:39:27 GMT, Richard Clark
wrote: On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 20:33:40 GMT, Dave Shrader wrote: Could a column of mercury inside a tube of glass be used as an antenna? OK Cecil I'll bite. Yep! [I think there may be a Troll here :-) ] Bite? SHF antenna arrays in a set of fillings? Think of how easily the antenna length could be adjusted. An intriguing idea, but the health hazards of working with Hg would be significant. Also, overheating the mercury column would be really bad, and with the higher resistivity, and difficulties in cooling the mercury, much more likely. Happy trails, Gary (net.yogi.bear) ------------------------------------------------ at the 51st percentile of ursine intelligence Gary D. Schwartz, Needham, MA, USA Please reply to: garyDOTschwartzATpoboxDOTcom |
#6
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On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 20:52:56 GMT, Gary S. Idontwantspam@net wrote:
Think of how easily the antenna length could be adjusted. Hi Gary, I have four high accuracy laboratory thermometers one of which is 6" from this keyboard (ambient 18.4° C) with a range of -1° to 51° C over a length of roughly 16 inches. I've built precision heaters and designed using TEMs; nothing is easy about controlling heat. - It's a stupid idea - 73's Richard Clark, KB7QHC |
#7
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"Richard Clark" wrote in message ... On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 20:52:56 GMT, Gary S. Idontwantspam@net wrote: Think of how easily the antenna length could be adjusted. Hi Gary, I have four high accuracy laboratory thermometers one of which is 6" from this keyboard (ambient 18.4° C) with a range of -1° to 51° C over a length of roughly 16 inches. I've built precision heaters and designed using TEMs; nothing is easy about controlling heat. - It's a stupid idea - True, but he didn't specify just how...You assumed... Maybe he ment by a pump. That's what I thought of. -- Steve N, K,9;d, c. i My email has no u's. |
#8
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Dave Shrader wrote:
Mercury is a metal, albeit a dangerous one. It has a resistivity about 55 times that of copper. Why in Heaven would you or anyone want to do it? [I think there may be a Troll here :-) ] No troll, just a wild hair. I got to thinking of using mercury as the conducting medium for an RF antenna switch and then wondered if mercury could replace the upper part of a whip where there is low current and high voltage. The mercury changing length in a thermometer triggered these unthinkable thoughts. Imagine changing the current through a resistor in order to tune an antenna by varying the mercury level. -- 73, Cecil, W5DXP -----= Posted via Newsfeeds.Com, Uncensored Usenet News =----- http://www.newsfeeds.com - The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! -----== Over 100,000 Newsgroups - 19 Different Servers! =----- |
#9
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Cecil Moore wrote:
No troll, just a wild hair. I got to thinking of using mercury as the conducting medium for an RF antenna switch and then wondered if mercury could replace the upper part of a whip where there is low current and high voltage. The mercury changing length in a thermometer triggered these unthinkable thoughts. Imagine changing the current through a resistor in order to tune an antenna by varying the mercury level. -- 73, Cecil, W5DXP Had the same wild hair once. One problem is that changing the length through temperature requires a thin column of mercury in a stiff container; probably not ideal for an antenna. I came up with a bunch of other practical issues that I'm sure will all get posted here in time. The best use of mercury in antennas is to go down to the creek and gather gold with it. Sell the gold and buy an antenna. -- Jim Pennino Remove -spam-sux to reply. |
#10
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"Cecil Moore" wrote in message ... Dave Shrader wrote: Mercury is a metal, albeit a dangerous one. It has a resistivity about 55 times that of copper. Why in Heaven would you or anyone want to do it? [I think there may be a Troll here :-) ] No troll, just a wild hair. I got to thinking of using mercury as the conducting medium for an RF antenna switch and then wondered if mercury could replace the upper part of a whip where there is low current and high voltage. The mercury changing length in a thermometer triggered these unthinkable thoughts. Imagine changing the current through a resistor in order to tune an antenna by varying the mercury level. No assumption here. I agree that this would be VERY difficult, although the "upper part" sounds feasable. Just replace the screwdriver motor & mechanism with a pump... -- Steve N, K,9;d, c. i My email has no u's. - 19 Different Servers! =----- |
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