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The Mercury Vortex Rail Gun

Peter Thomson 2002 /2003

WARNING Mercury vapour is highly toxic even in very smallamounts. This apparatus will instantly convert a bead ofmercury into a cloud of mercury vapour. The vortex is

extremely hot 2000C or higher.If the vortex detonates it will blow your lab apart.

This information is published in the interests of open science.

Not so you can try it for yourself in your back yard.

This apparatus is extremely simple, small and robust. It consists of

two concentric iron pipes with a small gap between them. I have usedsteel water pipe, but all traces of galvanising must be removed from

the facing surfaces or the zinc will react with the mercury. An Iron

container won't react with mercury, other metals such as copper will.

The inner pipe needs to be longer than the outer so that a good

electrical connection can be made to it.

The pipes are held apart by heat resistant insulation at the end away

from the muzzle. Fire cement works well (designed for small repairs infurnaces).

The concentric arrangment of the pipes means that the forcesgenerated by firing the rail gun are symetrical, and the vapour isconfined to get maximum acceleration.

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I have fired this thing supported in a large bucket of dry sand, pointing

vertically upwards.For the current needed to fire a rail gun, look at some of the accounts

by enthusiasts on the web. A large capacitor bank that can sustain

very rapid discharge is needed. You also need a trigger that you can

fire remotely! (Note again that high currents at high voltage are alsovery dangerous)

For a single shot firing mode, introduce a small bead of mercury into

the muzzle (in the gap betwen the pipes) and led it move to the base.Check that it is making a good electrical connection between the

concentric tubes with a multimeter.

Ensure that you can contain a very hot cloud of mercury vapour and

condense it back to mercury.Ensure that there is nothing that will be damaged by a detonation!!

Film through arc welding goggles or you will lose the chip in your

camera.

For a slightly more sophisticated system, use the injection of a bead of

mercury into the base of the vortex gun as the trigger for the

discharge.

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The end view shows the gun after test firing. Beads of iron have

eroded from the steel wall and deposited on the end of the muzzle

before cooling.

There are two potential vortex modes from this apparatus. The first is

similar to a smoke ring, detached from the gun and moving away from

it. The second is where small vortices form in the gun and these wrapround each other as they are ejected but remain attached to the innertube.

The next step would be to dissolve a little boron in the mercury before

firing!!.

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I have taken the practical experiments as far as my resources will

allow. I don't have the facilities to continue in safety, or theinstrumentation to measure what is happening. It is far too hot, too

fast and too dangerous.

But I am sure there are plenty of you who do have the resources andfacilities for a few extra experiments.Please report back - keep science open.

This information is copyright Peter Thomson 2001-2004

tornado experiments The Mercury VortexRail Gun in Iron Pipe

AndrewTennenbaum

Do you think it would be possible to use a bead of solder in the placeof mercury? This would be much safer, and the melting point of solder

is still very low, considering the temperatures we're dealing with

tornado experiments The Mercury Vortex Rail Gun inIron Pipe Peter

Certainly worth the experiment!

Let me know iff you try it

tornado experiments The Mercury Vortex Rail Gun inIron Pipe kevin

What, if you used something like aluminum or lithium instead of

mercury? vaporise it using some truly extreme cap banks, and allow it

to fire and to form the compressed plasma. you said that electrons are

fired or emitted towards the electrode, or tend to group at that end.

What if you cap the end electrode with a smooth ball like cap, and

charge it to an extreme negative potential. would this move the self-

contained plasma away from the gun? if by using a lighter metal such

that as the nuclei undergo fusion, they release energy into the system,

could you make something similar to a 'plasma rifle

Copyright Peter Thomson 2012-March-16