Re: starship-design: Starship-design: Plasma power

[Ben Franchuk <bfranchuk@jetnet.ab.ca>]

Johnny Thunderbird wrote:
 
> Propulsion in space was no longer a matter of the amount of fuel and
> oxidizer carried, but the amount of electricity available to boost the
> reaction mass, since the vehicle did not rely on chemical rocket engines to
> provide acceleration in space.

The real limiting is the fact that one still has to rely on chemical
boosters to LEO, Heat to dissipate from engines, and the power unit
can't be easily separated from trust unit ie: beamed energy.
PS. I think it about 30 watts per ISP unit of energy needed at 100%
effecentcy.

> The launch sequence was totally unlike any space launch visualized in
> earlier centuries. Informally, the launch vehicle was considered to be shot
> out of a hypervelocity gun at twelve miles altitude, but that concept was
> only a very inaccurate portrayal of a small part of the launch. The launch
> vessel was sealed within a long sleeve, of nitrocellulose fabric and film,
> inflated with hydrogen.

Never work in practice because the risk of loss do to a accident
is too high. The trouble with space travel every body thinks bigger
is better but is not.
 
> As I have said before, I like fusion to occur, not within the structure of a
> starship, but within the exhaust jet. Also, I like the proton-boron reaction
> because no neutrons are produced, which makes it clean, the kind of fusion
> reaction you might want to have in your neighborhood. Boron furthermore is
> cheaper than deuterium, much less tritium, and protons are a dime a dozen.
> In other words, a boron enrichment of the exhaust gas, perhaps by making
> boron a component of your anode to strike your arc for the arcjet, would
> make fine fat targets (measured in barns) for the beam of your proton linac.
> Smite the boron nuclei which hang around lazily in your exhaust jet with
> some really energetic protons out of the proton linac, and you obtain clean
> fusion. This may or may not catalyze proton-proton reactions, but either way
> it's an energy bonus.

 I like it boron reactions better too, but lets first get  deuterium
burning. Now if you want to study fusion better try this link. 
http://www.songs.com/philo/fusion/index.html

-- 
"We do not inherit our time on this planet from our parents...
 We borrow it from our children."
"Ancient Logic" http://www.jetnet.ab.ca/users/bfranchuk/al/index.html