Serious science question!

[TheLordOfSins]

Alright, I'm going to school for science, I'm most interested in nuclear power. Now, I don't know jack about machines sadly, though I'm interested in learning.

So heres my problem, I have a huge interest in powered armor (i.e The book of Starship Troopers, Macross, Exo Squad, Iron Man, ect) and one of our biggest current problems with it is lack of power. I was thinking, what about a hydraulic system thats run by a small nuclear reactor heating hydrogen that runs threw the hydraulic lines for movement. It'd be a closed system so there'd be no need to replace the hydrogen and the plutonium has a half life of like 10,000 years. The problem is, I know nothing of hydraulic systems.

So, anyone have any ideas, I'd love to hear them. This is just a concept I'm spit balling with and it's more food for thought then a serious lets do this idea.

[SaGa]

Alright, I'm going to school for science, I'm most interested in nuclear power. Now, I don't know jack about machines sadly, though I'm interested in learning.

So heres my problem, I have a huge interest in powered armor (i.e The book of Starship Troopers, Macross, Exo Squad, Iron Man, ect) and one of our biggest current problems with it is lack of power. I was thinking, what about a hydraulic system thats run by a small nuclear reactor heating hydrogen that runs threw the hydraulic lines for movement. It'd be a closed system so there'd be no need to replace the hydrogen and the plutonium has a half life of like 10,000 years. The problem is, I know nothing of hydraulic systems.

So, anyone have any ideas, I'd love to hear them. This is just a concept I'm spit balling with and it's more food for thought then a serious lets do this idea.

hydrogen i believe has a tendency to leak into metals and other elements. im sure another element whould be used. or fluid.

the idea of a mech whould start with less movement styled weaponsplatforms. just the feet and a rotating head. much like the game earthseige 1 and 2 where the movement was not exactly involved. but with portable nuclear tech. a real hovercraft could be more viable anyways.

[TheLordOfSins]

Well, right now they are using walkers for mountain rescues and such, where hover crafts can't go, people and helicopters can't go. There also working on personal powered armor, in a sense, more like powered limbs for help carrying heavier gear. But in a few years, it'll be reality.

But hydrogen is very easy to get, we have LOTS of it, also since it's a smaller element, it can expand allot as well. But I'm talking more on a personal size, not a mech. I have trouble seeing actual tank sized mechs having much use on a battlefield, they're to large and easy to see.

If you could have a single soldier in powered armor armed with say, a railgun and a nuclear missile even of a small size, you can hide and easily take out a mech. Same as what happened to tanks dumb enough to roll into an urban area without infantry support.

[SaGa]

Well, right now they are using walkers for mountain rescues and such, where hover crafts can't go, people and helicopters can't go. There also working on personal powered armor, in a sense, more like powered limbs for help carrying heavier gear. But in a few years, it'll be reality.

But hydrogen is very easy to get, we have LOTS of it, also since it's a smaller element, it can expand allot as well. But I'm talking more on a personal size, not a mech. I have trouble seeing actual tank sized mechs having much use on a battlefield, they're to large and easy to see.

If you could have a single soldier in powered armor armed with say, a railgun and a nuclear missile even of a small size, you can hide and easily take out a mech. Same as what happened to tanks dumb enough to roll into an urban area without infantry support.

i raise the argument of hydrogen due to its nature being a problem already with fuel cell cars.

[TheLordOfSins]

Point taken, what do you think would be able to handle 5,000 degree heat, be readily available and what would be good for use as the "tubing" in order to take that kind of heat and pressure?

[TheLordOfSins]

Another question for anyone of a scientific mind! Theres something known as an RTG or Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator, there great low power generators (400 watts per second for 28.5 years), but they only transfer the thermal energy to electric at a 3% rate, the highest they've ever gotten them too. Current hydroelectric nuclear plants are at about 35% ratio. How could you lift the thermal to electric energy transfer on one of those bad boys? You could power a car with that without gas for 28 years and thats just it's half-life!

[SaGa]

Point taken, what do you think would be able to handle 5,000 degree heat, be readily available and what would be good for use as the "tubing" in order to take that kind of heat and pressure?

5,000 hmmm does one exsist that has the properties. carbon could have potential as where still working with testing its nanoconstructions. bwt 5000 degrees in a armour suit. i think just the armour that has resistence to 5000 degrees whould be enough to sell of to the military

[TheLordOfSins]

5,000 hmmm does one exsist that has the properties. carbon could have potential as where still working with testing its nanoconstructions. bwt 5000 degrees in a armour suit. i think just the armour that has resistence to 5000 degrees whould be enough to sell of to the military

Well I know titanium has a high melting point, as does the ceramic covering the space shuttle.

Now mind you, 5,000 degrees is the highest were talking about here. But a fission reaction is offly hot even at it's lowest. A fusion is even hotter as it currently takes a fission reaction to make a fusion reaction.

I think it would be possible. But the only person that I knew of that knew anything about hydraulics said that that kind of system wouldn't be able to take the pressure.

So, going out on a limb here, lets say you could make a small reactor, say, the size of a normal backpack, keeping a fission reaction around 1000 deg, would there be a hydraulic system that would take that? And the bonus to this system is, whatever type of matter you have running threw the hydraulic system would be liquid or gas and could run a turbine as in a hydro electric plant and give the suit some electric power as well. But again, with current engineering, is this doable?!

[SaGa]

Well I know titanium has a high melting point, as does the ceramic covering the space shuttle.

Now mind you, 5,000 degrees is the highest were talking about here. But a fission reaction is offly hot even at it's lowest. A fusion is even hotter as it currently takes a fission reaction to make a fusion reaction.

I think it would be possible. But the only person that I knew of that knew anything about hydraulics said that that kind of system wouldn't be able to take the pressure.

So, going out on a limb here, lets say you could make a small reactor, say, the size of a normal backpack, keeping a fission reaction around 1000 deg, would there be a hydraulic system that would take that? And the bonus to this system is, whatever type of matter you have running threw the hydraulic system would be liquid or gas and could run a turbine as in a hydro electric plant and give the suit some electric power as well. But again, with current engineering, is this doable?!

"titanium.. The metal is dimorphic. The hexagonal alpha form changes to the cubic beta form very slowly at about 880oC. The metal combines with oxygen at red heat, and with chlorine at 550"

i dont think there is one small enough to take the pressure, thats why i mentioned carbon thou as thats the most viable thing i can think of that could withstand pressure and heat. depends on how well that heat could be contained with such a small space inbetween the reactor and the outside.... how well could the heat be controlled before hitting the hydrolics. if you could cool it down before it hits the system, then you could have something working here. but hydrolic systems are delicate with the size where supporting. it could hold pressure for a few days and then just bust up.