MIT Physics Demo -- Exploding Wire

[farout808]

Boom. :D

[jamey2244]

Make beats by pressing 5.

[RababaInc]

DANGER DANGER. HIGH VOLTAGE! when we touch, when we kiss....

[captkirkconnell]

You are efficiently educating people; the Federal Department of Education will soon shut this(MIT Applied Technology You Tube Videos) down. Forgive them, they know not what they do and Vote for Ron Paul

[timramich]

You would think people going to MIT would know how to properly deinterlace their videos.

[midnull]

@timramich

Just cuz a person is going to MIT, doesn't make them smart. I mean look at G.W. Bush. He went to Harvard...lol.

If you have the money, you can get into ANY school. :)

[freemanx2x]

I would think that if a metal-deuteride (lithium, palladium etc) would be used as a fuse , there are very high chances to see some fusion neutrons flying out !

[technofreak928]

i did this on accident witha 20 volt batterie trying to use it for electrolysis yeah didnt go so well we also learned capacitors are fun to blow up until your dad thinks you have a gun upstairs

[SSuperCuriouss]

molten metal shards down your collar dear boy.

[instantproducts]

I can't believe this guy actually touches the terminals of that cap. I wouldn't do it. One false move and ZAP! no more hand.

[jfdelgad]

@instantproducts  you're right!

[LightningX417]

I just watched this video because the title had the word "exploding" in it.

[hdyudu]

nothing left but ember

[absoluum]

Lethal Voltage Present????

Anyone that has any knowledge of electronics knows that voltage is not lethal, current on the other hand is.

[gennaman2bit]

@absoluum Actually it's energy killing u.

Energy is Power multiplied by time.

High voltage means high current.

If u're thinking a 100kv spark cant kill u u're right, but only because usually that spark is produced discharging a low capacity capacitor.

Using a high capacity capacitor 3kV can kill u, indeed.

[jfdelgad]

@gennaman2bit

usually you have a fixed quantity of energy so I can create a high voltage with a small batery of 9 volts but the current it can provide is extremely low becouse the energy conservation. Also Im not sure about the 20mA killing you, is very unlikely althoug not imposible

[gennaman2bit]

@jfdelgad 20mA in AC can kill you, indeed. But in this case this is DC, lethal current should be 200mA.

Anyway assuming 500 ohm as body human resistance (left hand-right hand) Ohm law is Voltage/Current=Resistance, so 3kV/500=6Amps (6000mA)

I think that's more than enaught to kill u, but I dont wanna try this on myself :)

[jfdelgad]

@gennaman2bit when you said 20mA AC are you talking about 220V lines? FES people is using AC (not 60Hz but KHz) signals with currents up to 100mA for muscle contraction so although I think you are right on saying this is dangerous my point is that you can't ensure that the person will die. In the case of 6Amp people will be burn but as far as the current do not affect vital organs nobody will die. your calculation asume that the person have the positive and negative cables in hands.. unlikely!

[gennaman2bit]

@jfdelgad assuming fes use 100mA (i really dunno that), but they have a duty cicle (usually less then 15%), u get 100mA for a very short time (15% period), then a long pause (75% of period), so medium current is 15mA.

U're right, if u touch the charged capacitor with 2 fingers of 1 hand u will not die, u will just loose your fingers.

Isn't that dangerous enaught 4 u?

Anyway, im not a MD, neither an electrician, try to ask them, but remember the explodind wire and try to answer yourself.

[BatixProductionsTE]

That sign should say "Lethal CURRENTS Pressent" Voltage isn't what kills you, it's the current.,

[shoelessjohn]

@BatixProductionsTE Not really, voltage is potential. It makes more sense to say that the potential exists. Saying "lethal currents present" is not true, as current doesn't exist there until the potential is realized.

[gennaman2bit]

@BatixProductionsTE not true.

High current and low exposition time (a spark) cant kill u.

Low current (20mA) and high exposition is lethal.

Current x Time = Energy.

It's energy killing u.

[BatixProductionsTE]

@gennaman2bit That makes sense. So technically the sign should say "Potentially Lethal Energy" or "Lethal Potential Energy"

[gennaman2bit]

@BatixProductionsTE yeah, this could be right.

But imagine Voltage as the altitude of a cliff, if u'll fall down, your potential energy will transform in kinetik energy. When u'll hit the ground kinetik energy will transform in a massive body pressure peak and work(physics) breaking your bones.

Now what to write in a warning signpost? "Warning: high potential energy danger fall hazard" or "Warning: high altitude fall hazard"?

Same if u think about a pressurized tank. It isnt pressure killing u.

[JohnLeaf64]

@BatixProductionsTE Well, isn't potential energy simply a theory, not a true form of energy? So the first makes more sense either way, whether it's correct or not.

[BatixProductionsTE]

@JohnLeaf64 So to settle the debate of what to write in the warning sign, how about:

"Warning, don't touch this sh*t!!""

I think that should be sufficient.

[morgane2]

jesus christ, that studies at mit and hasn't learned to de-interlace their videos ...

nice going guys ...

[zker666]

thats only 450 joules, so not that much

[gennaman2bit]

@zker666 really? 450j is 1A for 450 seconds

[Probewitch]

Love these MIT demo's, reminds me of encouraging children to play with matches.

[douglas787]

I have heard that the flash from a short circuit can damage your eyes, possibly even blind you. If it were true then I would think a MIT guy would not expose his eyes to such a bright flash.

[junkymagi]

@douglas787 Just like welding, he probably had his eyes closed.

[l3u11e7pr00f]

@valdezmiguel2

Yeah you'd think people at MIT would be able to shoot video properly haha

[nonsquid]

Would a copper wire produce x-rays just prior to exploding?

[LivingDog94]

@nonsquid: only if the inner electrons are excited sufficiently to jump to other inner orbits. I would guess yes. The question then is how much, and in what distribution along the wire.

Good question +1

[Xerae]

@nonsquid They cannot do simple.

They can only bend the laws of reality.

[jgpMRES]

May be in the experiment, the DC power supply charges that capacitor at high voltage level such that during discharge, there is initially high current at high voltage level then these decreased instantly at very fast rate (may be hyperbolic).

Just some insight...:)

JGP

[jgpMRES]

Nice experiment. But some info indicated in the video can be misleading. For example, voltage could not make metals melt or explode - it is the current that passes through (i.e., 10,000V at 0.0001A can not but 10.0V at 10,000A can).

JGP

[OrIoN1989]

It sure can. It's all about the wattage.

[artifactingreality]

nice

[rflooker]

i would like to see my old boss but his tongue on that.

[spicyvOHMitsnack]

what makes they guys appearance appear jagged-like when he moves?

[Rosuhman4647]

my guess is motion blurring, it happens with my animations with blender

[l3u11e7pr00f]

@spicyvOHMitsnack

The video isn't deinterlaced properly.

[antiswattt2]

can i haz one?

[na5m]

goggles are helpful. full face shield, protective gloves, and a stouter smock would have been better.

[MrRAndom5]

hello inspector

[na5m]

oh, to heck with it. let's just do this demonstration buck-naked :-D

[keebordcowboy]

KABOOM.. KABOOM.. i want to press the button.. please leave me to press the button .. the button.. KABOOM KABOOM... MIT RULES.. crazy M.F. hehehe

NICE..

[muchadoaboutnothingg]

would an inductor with high inductance do the same trick?

[railgap]

Probably not. Remember that an inductor opposes fast changes in current. The only way to do it with an inductor (using the BEMF) would be with immense currents through a large air-core inductor. An iron-cored inductor would be too "slow".

[Reisyukaku]

so that capacitor was rated for 3000 Volts? ...that awesome.

[oldor12]

Why is it 15min? The diameter is so small etc...Please answer...It can't be because conduction or resistance.

[railgap]

Very small power supply, very small available charging current.

[bellinivernon]

Exelente ! , gracias ,desde argentina.

[Doversreturn]

haha thats what you guys do all day,can i join?

[willberb]

Ha ha you used lexan instead of a flash suit, and you call yourself a super geek.

[railgap]

A flash suit is hardly required for a paltry 450 joules (ie; watt-seconds) of stored energy.

[tr0nb0y]

Wow... I had no idea you could explode iron wire. The more you know.

P.S. I'm sure MacGyver would know this, though.

[oto9atoz]

the lab coat and safety glasses are really cute, but where's the arc flash suit and high voltage gloves? - no excuse.

[frizspin175]

what is an arc flash suit. to protect from light radiation?

[oto9atoz]

an arc flash suit is mandatory when working with certain voltages, typically in or around circuit breakers, but it protects the wearer from the effects of an accidental short circuit explosion

- I supposed the lexan shields are supposed to be a substitute

[railgap]

There isn't enough power available from that cap to justify an arc-flash suit. This isn't like a high-fault-current AC feeder circuit!

[DeltaChip]

wtf r u talking about

[railgap]

Which words don't you understand?

[DeltaChip]

"arc flash suit" and "high-fault-current AC feeder circuit." sorry, I'm a senior in high school and I'm just trying to get ready for physics in college so I want to get a head start and learn some things first

[railgap]

Ah, well, that last is a much better way to get an answer than "WTF R U talking about". I suggest you lose the text-message-speak before you get to college.

So, the answers to your question are mostly already above, but: an "arc flash suit" is protective clothing - typically made from a non-flammable fabric like Nomex or Kevlar, sometimes covered with a metal coating to help reflect intense heat. The outfit would also include gloves and face/head protection. Search YT for "arc flash".

[DeltaChip]

oh, ok thank you

[indoazn]

@oto9atoz everyone knows physics is make believe, these things cant actually hurt you.

[MrFurysOfficial]

@oto9atoz He's Chuck Norris FULL EXCUSE

[titan768]

hehehehehehehehe