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Re: Weird ideas
From: Adam[SMTP:absmith-at-tiac-dot-net]
Sent: Friday, December 05, 1997 8:19 AM
To: Tesla List
Subject: Re: Weird ideas
>From: Mark S Graalman[SMTP:wb8jkr-at-juno-dot-com]
> Actually, IMHO there *really* is no such thing as
>efficiency in a machine that draws power yet does
>no actual work or provides no tangible benefits.
> It really is work/fun input, fun output.
Not true. Tesla coils draw a certain amount of power in, and discharge a
certain amount of power out. However, the power output is not easily
measured, so true electrical efficiency is not usually known.
The real figure of merit for a Tesla coil is spark length vs. wallplug
input power. In order to be a true gauge of performance, we would have
to standardize the atmospheric conditions, but since this is not often
controllable, we ignore it or comment vaguely about the humidity, etc...
Also, spark length is measured point to point, alone a straight line, not
along the actual path of the arc, which is quasi-fractal in nature, much
like a coastline.
It should also be noted that spark length vs. wallplug power is also
frequency dependant, and higher frequency coils seem to have better
ratios.
-Adam
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Epoch, Inc. Digital Music Project
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