Scientific
Teaching, Analysis and Research
Findings on
"Levitation in Earth's E-field" Technology
What is the Capacitor's
Mass?
The mass that could be lifted by a 1
coulomb charge in earth's 6 newton per meter electric field is
substantially less than 1 kilogram.
Force = mass * acceleration
in this case the force on a charged particle within an
electric field is the electric field strength times the charge
F = E * q
E * q = mass * 9.8 (acceleration due to gravity)
6 * 1 / 9.8 = mass
mass = .61224 kilograms (1.3469 pounds)
It is clear to see that either of the above capacitors would
weigh more than 1.3469 pounds. The mylar®(Dupont brand
name for polyester film) capacitor dielectic alone would weigh
more than 2.07 pounds. (The density of mylar® is 1.390 grams
per cubic centimeter.) The plates would have to weigh at
least half as much depending on thier thickness and material.
None the less, a very ambitious experimenter could build such a
device and observe it "lose weight", say up to about
50% of it's weight.
Incidently, a 1.5 meter (5 foot) diameter capacitor with 3
mil mylar would have a capacitance of 1.3 mf. Charged to 20,000
volts it would accumlate a 0.027 coulomb charge and have to have
a mass of 2.75 grams or less. To give you a feel for that mass,
it is slightly more than half the mass of a US nickle.
Also these calculations have been based on a
"typical" worst case e-field strength. The earth's
e-field does reach 100 volt per meter levels (100 newtons per
coulomb). At theses levels the resultant force should be about 16
or more times that in the previous calculations. In the 1.5 meter
capacitor that comes to about 45 grams (9 US nickles).
Is it possible to build a more practical capacitor that could
accumulate suffient charge to be accelerated more than the
earth's gravity by earth's electric field? The answer is
undoubtedly yes.
Currently one can purchase a 500,000 mf (0.5 farad) 5 volt
capacitor (electrolytic type) that has substantially less mass
than .6 kilograms. That is a 2.5 coulomb charge. The trouble is
that they are spiral wound electrolytic so that the vast majority
of the plate area is shielded from the electric field. Hence very
little force. If that type of capacitor could be made into a flat
3 plate capictor, then it would work.
charge on a 0.5 farad 5 volt capacitor
Q = C * V
Q = 0.5 farad * 5 volts
Q = 2.5 coulombs
The bottom line is that
a suffient charge accumulation on a capacitor, or any object for
that matter, of suffiently small mass, would be accelerated more
by the earth's electric field than by acceleration due to the
earth's gravity field. It would fly.
Clearly the answer lies in finding a suitable dielectric
material. I suspect that this dielectric will be a composite
material consisting of a bipolar substance sandwiched between a
substance with a high break down voltage. Bipolar substances
naturally have a high dielectric constant because of their
molecular structure. Take water for example. It has a dielectric
constant of 78. This is because of the natural charge seperation
on the water molecule itself. That makes the water molecule have
a positive end and a negitive end. In an electric field it aligns
itself along the field lines and aids the flow of the eletric
lines. It is for this same reason that it has a very low break
down voltage. Contain it in a substance with a high break down
voltage and the combined dielectric is lower than water, but
higher than that of the insulating material. I don't recommend
experimenting with electrolytic
materials. They are fragile at best and difficult to work
with (from an electrical and mechanical point of view).
Another interesting idea is that it may be possible to
concentrate the e-field locally around the capacitor. This could
be done if a material could be found that has a dielectric
constant less than that of air (K of air is about 1). Cover the
capacitor's outside with this material.
In a capacitor that has been charged to any particular value
and disconnected from the power supply the voltage remains at the
charged value. If a different dielectric material is introduced
between the plates the voltage across the plates will change.
When the dielectric constant is lower the voltage rises. Since
the distance between the plates remains constant and the coulomb
charge remains constant the voltage has to change. When the
voltage across the plates is lower (higher dielectric constant)
the e-field strength is lower (proportionally). A lower
dielectric constant increases the e-field strength
(proportionally). Increase the earth's e-field strength (locally)
by introducing a material with a lower dielectric constant than
that of air. Also, this is why the local e-field strength is
lower when clouds are over head. Water has a much higher
dielectric constant than air. Hence the local voltage gradient
(e-field strength) is lower.
Copyright © 1999 C.
Brauda. All Rights reserved.