ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
*****************************************************************************
Hi Wayne,
I don't know if they still have it, but the Exploratorium used to have a
small Tesla coil attached to their donation box. When you dontated money, the
coil would fire. You might check with them.
The Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa has a large coil in a Faraday's
cage. They also have it enclosed in glass, to cut down on the noise, and to
keep people from sticking things into the cage. If you do this, be sure that
you ventilate the case well. In the plasma environment of the sparks, all
sorts of interesting chemical reactions occur, including the formation of nitric
oxide, which combines with water in the air to form nitric acid. This
quickly corrodes your coil, corroding exposed metal.
Be sure that the cage surrounding the coil is well grounded, and be sure that
it is a real ground. not just tied into the conduit. Poor grounds have
caused me all sorts of problems, turning lights on and off, setting of fire
alarms, etc.
Place some grounded fluorescent or neon tubes near the coil and you can
demonstrate broadcast power. You don't have to have a wire connected to the end
of the bulb. Just lay it on a piece of grounded metal, preferably where the
ends are not touching the metal. Then you really get the idea that the power
for the bulb is coming through the air.
If you run into problems, give a yell. I am always glad to help.
Rob Krampf
www.krampf.com
In a message dated 3/16/07 10:35:46 AM, [log in to unmask] writes:
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
> *****************************************************************************
>
>
> A student is willing to donate a small Tesla coil to us, 3' tall*. I
> like the idea but we are too small to staff it, and the museum is
> reluctant to accept it on safety concerns. I've seen a very large
> version of the device in action in an electronics store (Fry's, Fremont,
> CA), and it is in a large cage (probably 12' on a side). They used to
> set it off about every hour, but it's a bit worn down now. This suggests
> to me that if we built a cage for it, then we could do a similar thing.
> That is, no staff and just let'er rip every once in awhile. My question
> is how do we build a cage? That is, how does one build a cage of proper
> dimensions to keep someone from getting hurt?
>
> * He really did a good job, and has volunteered to do another such item
> if the Tesla coil doesn't work out.
>
> --
>
> Wayne Watson (Watson Adventures, Prop., Nevada City, CA)
> (121.015 Deg. W, 39.262 Deg. N) GMT-8 hr std. time)
> Obz Site: 39° 15' 7" N, 121° 2' 32" W, 2700 feet
>
> "We had the sky, up there, all speckled with stars, and we
> used to lay on our backs and look up at them and discuss
> whether they was made, or only just happened."
> -- "Huckleberry Finn", Mark Twain
>
> Web Page: <home.earthlink.net/~mtnviews>
>
> ***********************************************************************
> More information about the Informal Science Education Network and the
> Association of Science-Technology Centers may be found at
> http://www.astc.org.
>
> The ISEN-ASTC-L email list is powered by LISTSERVR software from L-Soft. To
> learn more, visit
> http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html.
>
> To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
> message SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
**************************************
AOL now offers free email to everyone.
Find out more about what's free from AOL at http://www.aol.com.
***********************************************************************
More information about the Informal Science Education Network and the
Association of Science-Technology Centers may be found at http://www.astc.org.
The ISEN-ASTC-L email list is powered by LISTSERVR software from L-Soft. To learn more, visit
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html.
To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
message SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
[log in to unmask]
|