willner%cfa183@das.harvard.edu (Steve Willner) (03/06/91)
From: willner%cfa183@das.harvard.edu (Steve Willner) > Has anybody ever heard of a liquid called RED MERCURY > with a mass density of 20.2 that sells for the huge > amount of $ 400,000.- per kg. and is being used in > radar- and space-technology. I've never heard of it, but since no one else has responded, here are some guesses. The density of uranium and tungsten are around 19, so your quoted density seems high. But one might get a density close to (but lower than) that by coating tiny metallic spheres with a slippery polymer like Teflon. Then suspend the spheres in mercury, density 13.5. The spheres would have to be no larger than a few atoms in size, though, or the spaces between them would drastically reduce the average density. Of course it may be that one could do better using some entirely different approach. Obvious applications would be in making accelerometers or turn sensors, though ring-laser gyros should probably be superior in the latter role.