Sonoluminescence

[5614]

I just learned about sonoluminosity recently and found it quite fascinating.

 

It's basically the production of photons from a bubble which is bombarded with high frequency sound (aka ultrasound). Furthermore the heat within these bubbles has been measured between 10,000 kelvin and one megakelvin, (other theories say higher still, but they don't have any proof really as of yet). These temperatures are high enough for fusion to occur.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonoluminescence

[AzurePhoenix]

a bubble of what?

[BenSon]

The info in the link says photographic developer fluid and then someone else did it with argon bubbles in sulfuric acid...That would be pretty sweet if they could be used for nuclear fusion but seeing as though they can't reproduce the results maybe it was just a fluke...

 

~Scott

[AzurePhoenix]

ahh, how'd I miss that, I swear I read it....

[YT2095]

much of the time the liquid media used is Acetone, it`s particularly suceptible to cavitation, although it can occur in ordinary water, but much higher powers are needed.

[5614]

About the fusion:

 

The high compression of a small bubble of fluid is similar to the explosive compression of a pellet of material by laser beams, one of the methods proposed for creating nuclear fusion, which has not been very successful. Prosperetti and others think that it is impossible for a bubble to maintain a perfectly spherical shape as it compresses, with either the laser or acoustic compression method, ruling out the high temperatures required for nuclear fusion.

[Guest JohnH]

Even if these sonoluminescence experiments do not produce the release neutrons needed to show fusion. The bubbles are still generating massive amounts of heat. Surely the heat of bubbles could be used in conventional power generators.

[swansont]

Even if these sonoluminescence experiments do not produce the release neutrons needed to show fusion. The bubbles are still generating massive amounts of heat. Surely the heat of bubbles could be used in conventional power generators.

 

The energy that generated that heat comes from somewhere else - you have to form the bubble first. Absent a fusion (or chemical) reaction this is a net energy sink, not a source.

[[Tycho?]]

Even if these sonoluminescence experiments do not produce the release neutrons needed to show fusion. The bubbles are still generating massive amounts of heat. Surely the heat of bubbles could be used in conventional power generators.

 

Surey it couldn't be used in that way. The energy put in would be greater than the energy gained, unless fusion was achieved.