Cool transportation system :b:

[JohnT]

Re: Cool transportation system

Originally posted by child of Thor

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4409649.stm

One answer to gas guzzleing cars and traffic jams?
Would you consider getting one?

Hell no, 'cause 12mph ain't ****. I exit my driveway at 12mph!

[Japher]

What the hell is liquid air? And what would you use it for?

[General Ludd]

Originally posted by Japher
What the hell is liquid air? And what would you use it for?

It is liquid air, and it's used for cooling.

[DanS]

What the hell is liquid air? And what would you use it for?

Liquid oxygen. As liquid oxygen evaporates (boils off), the temperature plummets. Used in rockets and any number of other applications.

Would you consider getting one?

Sure.

It's a great idea for the 1-3 mile trip in cities that are slightly more spread out than your typical Euro city. A little expensive right now, though.

[joncha]

[Proteus_MST]

Originally posted by Starchild
Why Segway when I can, as the article points out, walk to where I need to go?

Yep, that´s it
While it might be interesting to drive something like this,
walking (or using a bike) allows you more freedoms
and, as a nice side efffect, trains your body (and may prevent you from getting too fat )

Those people who really might benefit from Segways, i.e. people with injuries or disabilities which make it hard for them to walk,
might lack the dexterity to use a segway.

[Dauphin]

Originally posted by DanS

What the hell is liquid air? And what would you use it for?

Liquid oxygen. As liquid oxygen evaporates (boils off), the temperature plummets. Used in rockets and any number of other applications.

Intuitively, I would have said liquid air was primarily liquid nitrogen partially liquid oxygen and a small amount of other liquefied gases.

[DanS]

I may be incorrect, but since liquid nitrogen and liquid oxygen separate, which complicates handling, I'm guessing what's in that tank is liquid oxygen. Somebody in manufacturing might be able to clarify.

[Combat Ingrid]

Cool transportation system

[Dauphin]

Dan, given that the company's name is Canadian Liquid Air, who supply oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen and others liquefied gases, it could conceivably be anything inside that container.

[Japher]

Somebody in manufacturing might be able to clarify

I'm in manufacturing. I've used liquid nitrogen but never liquid oxygen, at least not in my industry. Must be some semi-conductor type industry. I would assume it to be oxygen, like DanS said, as if it were nitrogen it would say nitrogen.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Its almost impossible to say as you can't see the placarding. If it was Liquid N2 then the placarding would indicate an asphixiant if liquid O2 it would be described as an oxidizer.

AS for liquid air uses (and it is readily available)

liquid air, ordinary air that has been liquefied by compression and cooling to extremely low temperatures (see liquefaction). Its commercial preparation involves purification by washing to remove soluble impurities and by passage over calcium oxide (lime) to remove the carbon dioxide; compression, under a pressure of 200 atmospheres, or about 3,000 lb per sq in.; cooling, by passage through pipes immersed in cold water; treatment with sodium hydroxide to remove excess water; and rapid expansion, the expanding air passing back over the pipe from which it has just escaped absorbing so much heat that the air remaining in the pipe becomes liquid. Freshly liquefied air consists of 78.1% nitrogen, 21.0% oxygen, 0.9% argon, and very small amounts of rare gases and hydrogen in solution. Its boiling point is approximately −195°C. Because of fractional evaporation, its oxygen concentration and its boiling point increase with time. It must be kept in a specially designed container, the Dewar flask, because at ordinary temperatures it absorbs heat rapidly and reverts to the gaseous state. Liquid air is used commercially for freezing other substances and especially as an intermediate step in the production of nitrogen, oxygen, and argon and the other inert gases. As the temperature of liquid air rises, the nitrogen evaporates first at −195.8°C, the argon next at −185.7°C, and the oxygen last at −183°C. See low-temperature physics.

[Dis]

I've always wondered. Do these things have a kickstand? How do they stand up when you turn them off?

[Dis]

[mrmitchell]

Cool transportation system