Re:Iron Nitride Permanent Magnets – An Alternative to Rare E...
by murbard2 on Thursday May 18, 2017 @06:10PM
(#14371517)
I don't think the problem is the pressure - holding up one atmosphere is not big deal - I think it's the porosity. It just takes one hole, anywhere, and pscchht you start losing your vaccum. You have to continuously run pumps to get rid of the air that finds its way in, and their efficiency is inversely proportional to the pressure difference.
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Re:Iron Nitride Permanent Magnets – An Alternative to Rare E...
by Robotbeat on Thursday May 18, 2017 @07:14PM
(#14371830)
This is also true of below-water-table tunnels and pipelines of various sort, which are often at much higher pressure and with much greater environmental risk.
Re:Iron Nitride Permanent Magnets – An Alternative to Rare E...
by AstralStorm on Thursday May 18, 2017 @10:48PM
(#14372693)
It is quite a bit easier to hold back a liquid than a gas. Different minimum pore size and you get hydrophobic chemistry and surface tension on your side.
Especially at such big pipe diameters as required.
You can use cheap materials like modified concrete to patch a hole in an underwater tunnel, not so in a vacuum tube - that needs something much better and more expensive.