My recently started blog - need suggestions

[Picard]

Does anyone know how long hand phaser and phaser rifle (I am talking about UFP weapons) can be fired at maximum strength?

[Praeothmin]

Until their energy cells are empty?

Seriously, I do not know of any power usage limit having ever been explicitely mentioned, sorry... :)

[Picard]

Does anyone know how to calculate energy required to put 1 kg of matter into orbit?

[Kor_Dahar_Master]

Does anyone know how to calculate energy required to put 1 kg of matter into orbit?

W = ((1 Kg)(1.1175E4)2) / 2 = 6.24E7 Joules, so since 1 Joule = 2.78E-7 KwHr the work needed to accelerate 1 Kg to 25,000 mph (escape velocity) is 17.8 KwHr.

[Picard]

Thanks. I found calculator in meantime but I still prefer to do calculations myself.

Here is that page:

http://picard578.blogspot.com/2010/08/hand-phasers.html

[Mike DiCenso]

The storage capacity issue for hand phaser weapons is pretty controverisal, though we do know for certain canonically thanks to TNG's "The Mind's Eye" that a phaser rifle power pack can easilly hold a charge of around 53.55 megajoules as a phaser rife was test fired with a stated output of 1.05 megawatts for 34 and 17 seconds with no sign in sight of the power pack charge being depleated.

The TOS power pack issue was gone over some years ago by Graham Kennedy here as an article for his Daystrom Institue Technical Library website.
-Mike

[Kor_Dahar_Master]

Here is a bit of "Wong/Saxton" style math using Ultra-dense deuterium/anti-deuterium that will get the warsies raving.

This is a image of what we think is a standard photon torpedo warhead (Bottom right) :-





Ultra-dense deuterium has been produced in minute amounts already, although it was done in regards to experiments that will hopefully aid in the creation of laser-induced fusion (we will have to wait a while for M/AM reactors). The Ultra-dense deuterium that has been so far produced has a density of 130kg per cubic centimeter.

Leaving room for containment ect lets use the low end estimate of 4200 cubic cm for the reactants multiply it by 130 and devide it by 2 (as we need room for both Ultra-dense deuterium/Ultra-dense anti-deuterium in the warhead).

That gives us a total of 273,000kg of reactants, or if you prefer 136,500kg of each.

273,000kg of M/AM = 11,728,080 megatonnes or 11.72 teratonnes (given a perfect reaction).


While those figures will have most people instantly reaching for the "wank o'meter" the amusing fact is that Ultra-dense deuterium is a reality while hypermatter (whatever the hell it is) simply is not.

[Picard]

Maybe, but there are two such canisters, and it is possible that one holds deuterium and another antideuterium.

[Kor_Dahar_Master]

Maybe, but there are two such canisters, and it is possible that one holds deuterium and another antideuterium.

Fine so double the storage means double the yield making it 23.45 teratonnes.

[Picard]

Thanks on notification about canisters. I just updated torpedo page - got 9 teratons yield from that picture. And warsies cannot take that it is actually "ordinary" deuterium, beacouse I already proved on Federation Warp core page that Federation uses "super" deuterium.

EDIT: About yield, I calculated only for "roller" part of canister in order to get low-end (plus antideuterium is certainly contained in containment field which automatically limits amount of deuterium which in turn means that not entire volume of canister is used). Plus 100% efficiency is impossible so I calculated for 74% efficiency from TM).

[Picard]

About your "perfect reaction" - reaction is never "perfect", and in TM we have 74% efficiency stated (I know it is not canon, but it is best I have).

[Mr. Oragahn]

I believe AM containment needs very low temperatures, and thus far the high density deuterium achieved with the laser was obtained with an extreme heat level for the small quantity they compressed... not to say that you're adding another problem in that now you need a shell which can not only hold AM into place, but which won't break due to the sheer internal pressure.

[Mr. Oragahn]

Level seven: Capable of vaporizing noranium carbide alloy. (TNG: "The Vengeance Factor")

Level ten: Kill setting, capable of killing a biological organism. (TNG: "Aquiel")

Mmm, that noranium thing is crap if it can be vaporized by an energy level that wouldn't even kill a human.

TOS example

Average male human weights 75 kilograms, with ~ 60% of that water. I will therefore calculate enrgy needed to vaporize 75 kg of water by increasing its temperature by 63°C. (standard body temperature of healthy human is around 37°C).

Now, to increase temperature of 1 g of water by 1°C you need 1 calorie, or 4.184 joules. So, for vaporization of 75 kilograms of water, you need 75 x 1000 x 63 or 4 725 000 calories. That is 19 769 400 joules - almost 19.8 MJ. Now, temperature is probably well above 100°C, but this is most conservative estimate possible.

And you have already heated the body beyond the level that's necessary for complete gibbering.
Can't remember seeing that happen much in Trek though.

Now for more optimal estimate. In TOS we've been told of almost 8 000 °C temperatures being created by phasers. Now (if we assume such temperature for our human) we have 70 x 1000 x 7963 or 597 225 000 calories. That is 2 498 789 400 joules - or 2.5 gigajoules. Shots from phasers commonly last about 1/2 of second, so direct firepower might be 5 gigajoules per second.

Did they ever say what volume of what matter was heated up that high?

Stone example firepower

Phasers are able to heat stones enough to glow (again - no chain reaction or other technobablle, just good ol' energy transfer). As already said, 8 000 ° C temperatures are being created by phasers.

Specific heat capacity of granite is 1.534 J(cm^3 x K). That means, to raise temperature of 1 cubic cm of granite by 1 kelvin (kelvin is essentialy same as °C) you need to bring 1.534 joules. Now, to heat granite from starting temperature of 25 ° C to 8 000 ° C we need to raise its temperature by 7975 K. So we have equation E= 1.534 J (6 000 000 cm^3 x 7975 K). (6 cubic meters is most we ever saw being cleanly vaporized). That gives us 7.34 x 10e10 joules or 73.4019 gigajoules.

Did we see the logical heat effects expected from such amounts of energy applied to mere rock?

[Mike DiCenso]

Two thousand three hundred fourteen degrees centigrade or kelvin is certainly enough to kill a human, or seriously injure them. For comparison, iron boils at 2,862° C, 2519 °C for aluminum. Given how fast the phaser delivered the energy into the material, it was pretty energetic however you look at it.
-Mike

[Picard]

Did we see the logical heat effects expected from such amounts of energy applied to mere rock?

I don't remember actual episode in question, but I think that hand phaser was used to heat stones enough to glow in TNG - and that was definetly energy transfer, given that rocks continued to glow long after mr. xy stopped firing his ray gun.