vandigraph high voltage collector dome

[dacflyer]

ya i am up to annoying neighbors again..
i am searching to see what is useable material for me to make my HV dome for my vandigraph gen.
or tesela coil...
most i see are made of spun aluminum,,
can i use stainless steel? or anyother metals?
is aluminum holding a charge better?
does shape matter? ( domed / ball )<p>also does the dome have to be a solid piece or canit be a 2 piece system?
might order me a giant flag pole ball..would be nice if i could find me a big aluminum cook pot..

[jwax]

We must get the spelling right first! Van deGraff put together a static-electricity accumulator that allows a static charge from a moving belt to build up in a metal dome, until breakdown is reached. All static electricity- lots of volts, very limited current, but still a scary sparker!
Tesla however, was very into AC fields, and one of his many contributions was the Tesla Coil. It is a resonant circuit that can convert ordinary line power into very powerful RF energy. It'll not only spark, and crack like thunder, it'll be on AM, FM, TV, cell, and may light up your neighbors fluorescents too!
(For unneighbors, I still prefer ultrasonics.)

[Edd]

The last one I helped a budding young neighborhood scientist with , was two co-joined cheap aluminum bowls like one can find at the dollar stores. The rolled edges were ground off and the balls later joined. The cheaper the better, as the lighter gauge aluminum is more malleable , we accomplished the rounding out of the slight flat on the bottom by the use of the curve on the handle end of a ash baseball bat, by tapping on the end of the bat with a 2 pound metal mall. The bowls bottom was pressed down into a pail of very slightly damp sand. The working around of the bat while tapping on it, contoured out a perfectly rounded 1/2 round dome for the top. The second mixing bowl served for the bottom half of the dome, unmodified , as it was cut further open for the plastic tube to pass thru it. I would surely not think of SS if you have ever tried to work any of that! Aluminum will be fine.<p>73's de Edd
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<p>[ December 20, 2004: Message edited by: Edd Whatley ]</p>

[jollyrgr]

Metal salad bowls, as Edd suggests. There is a construction article on HOW STUFF WORKS website. Go here:
http://science.howstuffworks.com/vdg3.htm<p>They used metal salad bowls. The article also gives hints on how to avoid problems, such as not using wood to construct the base and tower.

[russlk]

I was surprised to read that metal brushes are recomended and they do not touch the belt. I don't understand how that works. BTW, take note that the upper brush has to be inside the sphere.

[Adam Y.]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr> They used metal salad bowls. The article also gives hints on how to avoid problems, such as not using wood to construct the base and tower. <hr></blockquote>
Wood will work perfectly in certain situations. I know the museum in Boston has a two story generator that uses wood as it's base. It's impossible to use any other material from what I was told.<p>[ December 23, 2004: Message edited by: Adam Y. ]</p>