really high voltage

[spuffock]

Suppose for an instant that I have a really big capacitor, and it's charged to 15 megavolts
yes, megavolts.
How might one go about converting this energy to a more manageable format?
Steam may not be raised except for cooling purposes.

 

[Hero999]

It depends on the size of the capacitor and what you want to do with the energy?

 

[spuffock]

The capacitor has an energy supply, and can be regarded as virtually infinite.
I want to power a city with it.

 

[Hero999]

So it's an alternative energy machine? You do know that's impossible.

Or is this a theoretical discussion?

How would one go about converting 15MVDC to mains voltage?

With great difficulty.

I don't know if current technology is good enough to do this.

I know that 1MV to mains is already used for HVDC distribution.

I've not seen any schematics, I'd assume they uses stacks of IGBTs to form an oscillator driving a transformer and a rectifier to convert it to a lower DC voltage which is then converted to AC using an inverter.

 

[spuffock]

In a theoretical discussion on a fusion reactor, the primary output was given as 15 megavolts DC.
If this were the case, I was wondering how one would go about using it.
If this type of reactor were built, the output would in fact consist of bursts of alpha particles at just below 15 MeV. I visualise some sort of inverse cyclotron to slow them almost to a stop, giving a frequency swept output in the kilovolts range, much easier to handle.

 

[Hero999]

Electron volts is a measure of ionising energy and is totally different to potential difference.

 

[tcmtech]

Use a really really big vacuum tube based inverter system!

 

[spuffock]

OK, I,m a pillock for not thinking. The alpha particle, with a charge of 2,would only represent 7.5 or so megavolts.
You're right, the electron volt is a measure of energy, being the amount of clout an electron picks up falling through 1 volt.
So, I'm wrong by a factor of 2.
The point is, at some time this reactor may exist, and I'm curious about the best way to use the energy from it.
Also, it looks strangely back-shed- buildable................

 

[Hero999]

Sorry, you're wrong by more than a factor of two, eV do not equate to V which is potential difference.

eV is a measure of energy.

For example green light has an eV of 2.3V but that doesn't mean you can just shine a green light on an electrode and it will power a circuit.

Electronvolt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[spuffock]

buggrit, thats what I SAID!
An alpha particle,(-2 electron charges) moving through 1 volt changes by 2eV!
There is no point continuing this argument becaus we are on the same side!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bryan1]

There is no point continuing this argument becaus we are on the same side!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well hold your right hand with Hero's left hand, your left hand goes to ground, Hero's right hand goes to the megawatt postive voltage point and................................ Presto the forum will have 2 bright sparks...............

 

[smanches]

I'm assuming this research is what he's referring to. Looks like they are really getting someplace finally, and can actually maintain the reactions for some time.

**broken link removed**

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

I'm assuming this research is what he's referring to. Looks like they are really getting someplace finally, and can actually maintain the reactions for some time.

**broken link removed**

I'd be happier with "getting somewhere" if it was feeding power to the National Grid

 

[smanches]

That's what ITER is for. They're first goal is to sustain a 400 second reaction which will produce 500MW of power.

Last I heard, that reactor was going to be in France. Then the next bigger one in Japan.

 

[spuffock]

If they get this reactor to run, they,ll have a pulsed beam of alpha particles to deal with. It'll make a neat rocket, large payloads to europa and all that.
but here on earth, given effectively a tight beam of charged particles going at a hell of a clip, I expect they'll dump them in a bucket of water to raise steam to run turbines..............
By the way, I live close enough to JET to detect the neutrons.....