phil@amdcad.AMD.COM (Phil Ngai) (02/01/88)
It just hit me that I could build a superconductor in my own garage,
given access to liquid nitrogen. (don't ask why it took so long)
Has anyone reading this done so? Got any good recipes? Sources of the
chemicals needed? (I shouldn't have any problem getting the liquid
nitrogen.) I expect any chemical supply house could provide most of
the ingredients but I've never dealt with one. Do they sell to anyone?
(couldn't that be dangerous?)
I hope this topic hasn't been covered in sci.physics already. Sorry if
it has, but I don't usually read that group, though I will be now.
--
The VT220 keyboard sucks, but the VT320 is usable.
DEC finally got it right!
Phil Ngai, {ucbvax,decwrl,allegra}!amdcad!phil or phil@amd.combeckenba@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (Joe Beckenbach) (02/01/88)
[]
Phil, about three months ago I posted to some net-group (sci.space?)
some of this information which you request. Here's the gist of it:
Schiecter, Bruce. "How To Make Your Own Superconductors", _OMNI_,
Vol. X, #2 (Nov 1987), pp 72-76.
He gives a cookbook recipe for making an easily-built superconductor
named "123" [Y Ba Cu O ] which can tolerate 99.9% purity of materals.
[ 1 2 3 7+x]
This is a liquid nitrogen superconductor. Several high schools have had
students produce this superconductor with the help of research scientists
from various universities. As the author justly warns, "Please remember,
recipes are rarely complete. The experienced chef knows this and fills in
missing steps unconsciously. The same is true of laboratory recipes. The
consequences of mistakes in the kitchen are only unpalatable; laboratory
mistakes can be dangerous or even deadly."
Ingredients: Copper oxide, barium carbonate, yttrium oxide (these will
be used in proportions of 1-2-3 for the atoms we're interested in. Masses would
come out to 1.13 grams YO, 3.95g BaCO2, 2.39g Cu0 {formulae mine and so not
definitive.} Masses from the article in OMNI.)
Tools: Mortar and pestle, kiln (with oxygenator for last baking),
hydraulic press with 20,000-pound capacity (really 15-18); also, you will need
various support gear (asbestos pads, cleaning supplies [since a contaminated
workarea will ruin the recipe], etcetera).
Grind powders together. Bake 12 hours in kiln at 900-950 degrees C.
[Baking at higher temperatures often means failure.] Let cool inside turned-off
kiln (around 6 hrs.) then regrind the resulting black mass. Place in disk die
and compress in hydraulic press to 15-18 thousand pounds. Result is just barely
a superconductor. To improve performance drastically, rebake in kiln with a
"gentle flow of oxygen" at 950C [time unspecified, possibly another 12 hours],
then let cool VERY SLOWLY ("eight hours at the minimum"-- Schiecter)
I suggest that you locate a copy of this article; there are more items
in the article than the recipe. Good luck.
--
Joe Beckenbach (CS BS '88) I'D RATHER BE ORBITINGwhh@pbhya.UUCP (Wilson Heydt) (02/01/88)
In article <20175@amdcad.AMD.COM>, phil@amdcad.AMD.COM (Phil Ngai) writes: > > It just hit me that I could build a superconductor in my own garage, > given access to liquid nitrogen. (don't ask why it took so long) > > Has anyone reading this done so? Got any good recipes? Sources of the > chemicals needed? (I shouldn't have any problem getting the liquid > nitrogen.) I expect any chemical supply house could provide most of > the ingredients but I've never dealt with one. Do they sell to anyone? > (couldn't that be dangerous?) I seem to remeber seeing that Edmund Scientific has a kit out that contains everthing you need to make a 1:2:3 superconductor. (That's the BASIC recipe--the ratio of the three principle metals in the ceramic.) Check any issue of Popular Science, Scientific American etc., etc. for their address. None of the chemicals are dangerous, but I think you'll need access to a ceramics kiln to 'cook' it. ========================================================================= Hal Heydt | Analyst, Pacific*Bell | Real men write self 415-645-7708 | modifying code. {dual,qantel,ihnp4}ptsfa!pbhya!whh |
fiddler%concertina@Sun.COM (Steve Hix) (02/02/88)
In article <20175@amdcad.AMD.COM>, phil@amdcad.AMD.COM (Phil Ngai) writes: > > It just hit me that I could build a superconductor in my own garage, > given access to liquid nitrogen. (don't ask why it took so long) > > Has anyone reading this done so? Got any good recipes? Sources of the > chemicals needed? (I shouldn't have any problem getting the liquid > nitrogen.) I expect any chemical supply house could provide most of > the ingredients but I've never dealt with one. Do they sell to anyone? > (couldn't that be dangerous?) (I haven't done it myself, but...) A local high school science class has produced high-temperature superconductors at least twice in the past year. (Two different set of students.) You might be able to get them (or the responsible teacher) to give you some information about their method, equipment, suppliers and so on. (Dammned phone books...) Well, try this phone number (it probably isn't the right one, but it should get you started on the right path...the stupid phone book doesn't list which school is where, but I think I got the right street. [I don't live in Gilroy]) 408-842-6414 Good luck. If this doesn't work, blame the Gilroy Dispatch newspaper. :} seh
eugene@pioneer.arpa (Eugene N. Miya) (02/03/88)
Funny, I thought people were complaining about non-computer
seminar postings (like chemistry and physics) by IBM
in ba.seminars. ;-)
Jumping on the bandwagon of science, eh?
From the Rock of Ages Home for Retired Hackers:
--eugene miya, NASA Ames Research Center, eugene@ames-aurora.ARPA
"You trust the `reply' command with all those different mailers out there?"
"Send mail, avoid follow-ups. If enough, I'll summarize."
{uunet,hplabs,hao,ihnp4,decwrl,allegra,tektronix}!ames!aurora!eugenephil@osiris.UUCP (Philip Kos) (02/04/88)
Since several articles have asked about sources for superconductor
materials and info, I'll post this instead of mailing it straight back
to Phil Ngai...
Don Lancaster's "Hardware Hacker" column in the latest (February, 1988)
issue of Radio-Electronics covered superconductors and included some
sources. He specifically mentioned Laboratory Specialists (2085 Dahlia,
Denver, CO 80207, (303) 322-2120) as a source of ready-made samples, and
AESAR (P.O. Box 1087, Seabrook, NH 03874, (800) 343-1990) for raw
materials.
--
...!decvax!decuac -
Phil Kos \
The Johns Hopkins Hospital ...!seismo!mimsy - -> !aplcen!osiris!phil
Baltimore, MD /
...!allegra!mimsy -root@conexch.UUCP (Larry Dighera) (02/05/88)
In article <20175@amdcad.AMD.COM> phil@amdcad.AMD.COM (Phil Ngai) writes: > >It just hit me that I could build a superconductor in my own garage, >given access to liquid nitrogen. (don't ask why it took so long) > >Has anyone reading this done so? Got any good recipes? Sources of the >chemicals needed? (I shouldn't have any problem getting the liquid The following article appeared in December 28th issue of Electronic Engineering Times: "Do-It-Yourself" Kit Spreads Gospel Of Superconductivity To The Masses By Roland C. Wittenberg COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It had to happen sooner or later, but the recent increase in the activity in high-temperature superconducting materials made it sooner. Superconductive components Inc. (SCI), the supplier of the first commercially available improved yttrium-barium-copper-oxide super conducting powders, has rolled out a superconducting fabrication and demonstration kit for the experimenter, and students in high school of college. SCI offers two basic kits: a $50 demonstration kit and a fabrication and demonstration kit that is tagged from $200. The demonstration kit includes a prefabricated superconducting disk, a rear earth magnet and a plastic tweezer for handling the cooled disk. The only additional material needed is liquid nitrogen to cool the disk for demonstrating the Meissner effect, in which a superconducting disk can be floated over a magnet. The fabrication kit includes all the materials in the demonstration kit plus: 10 grams (or more, depending on price) of yttrium-oxide, barium-carbonate, and copper-oxide; a mortar and pestle; a crucible; a pill die for compressing the material into 1/2-inch disks; and gloves, spoons and masks. Two scanning electron microscope photographs are included for those experimenters who want to examine and compare the detailed structure of the material. In order to fabricate disks of the superconducting material, the experimenter needs the following facilities that are usually found in the school laboratory or shop: a kiln for several 12 hour cycles at 1,000 degrees C to fire and anneal the superconducting material; a vise for operating the pill die; and the liquid nitrogen source. The demonstration kit comes with a shout instruction manual, while the fabrication kit includes an extensive manual on manufacturing and testing superconducting materials. -- USPS: The Consultants' Exchange, PO Box 12100, Santa Ana, CA 92712 TELE: (714) 842-6348: BBS (N81); (714) 842-5851: Xenix guest account (E71) UUCP: conexch Any ACU 2400 17148425851 ogin:-""-ogin:-""-ogin: nuucp UUCP: ...!ucbvax!ucivax!mickey!conexch!root || ...!trwrb!ucla-an!conexch!root
eugene@aurora.UUCP (Eugene miya) (02/05/88)
From IEEE Spectrum Feb. 1988, page 58:
You can get a one inch pellet of yttrium barium copper oxide for $29
and a demonstration kit:
Colorado Superconductor
Box 8223
Fort Collins, CO 80526
LN2 not included.
From the Rock of Ages Home for Retired Hackers:
--eugene miya, NASA Ames Research Center, eugene@ames-aurora.ARPA
"You trust the `reply' command with all those different mailers out there?"
"Send mail, avoid follow-ups. If enough, I'll summarize."
{uunet,hplabs,hao,ihnp4,decwrl,allegra,tektronix}!ames!aurora!eugenemunir@vcvax1.UUCP (munir) (02/06/88)
> > It just hit me that I could build a superconductor in my own garage, > given access to liquid nitrogen. (don't ask why it took so long) > I just read in IEEE Spectrum that a company in Colorado (I think) is selling a kit complete with care instructions (no nitrogen). The price was somthing like $39. The mag is at home so I cannot post the address today - more later Munir Mallal
svv@cory.Berkeley.EDU (Nobody in Particular) (02/09/88)
In article <193@conexch.UUCP> root@conexch.UUCP (Larry Dighera) writes: > > ...The only additional >material needed is liquid nitrogen to cool the disk for demonstrating >the Meissner effect, in which a superconducting disk can be floated >over a magnet. WOW! The disk can be floated over the magnet!! That's a real strong magnetic field!! (Actually, methinks the magnet floats over the disk, but what do I know? I'm not a physics major...) ------------------------------------------------ #include <disclaimer.h> S.Vasudevan svv@cory.berkeley.edu
cpf@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu (Courtenay Footman) (02/25/88)
In article <633@pasteur.Berkeley.Edu> svv@cory.Berkeley.EDU.UUCP (Nobody in Particular) writes: >In article <193@conexch.UUCP> root@conexch.UUCP (Larry Dighera) writes: >> ...The only additional >>material needed is liquid nitrogen to cool the disk for demonstrating >>the Meissner effect, in which a superconducting disk can be floated >>over a magnet. >WOW! The disk can be floated over the magnet!! That's a real strong >magnetic field!! >(Actually, methinks the magnet floats over the disk, but what do I >know? I'm not a physics major...) Here is a diagram of the experiment: O \_______/ O can be a magnet and float over a superconducting dish, or it can be a superconductor floating over a magnetic dish. Since it is easier to make a large magnet than a large superconductor, one usually has the supercondutor float over the magnet. The magnetic field required for a given distance is the same in both cases. -- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Courtenay Footman ARPA: cpf@lnssun9.tn.cornell.edu Lab. of Nuclear Studies Usenet: Sometimes works Cornell University Bitnet: cpf@CRNLNUC.BITNET