Quote:
Originally Posted by Moontanman
...the fusion gas is held behind a fused silica glass and does not contact the hydrogen. Unless the silica glass is compromised there is no reason for the uranium hexafluoride gas to leak into the exhaust.
|
As long as the gas can be contained properly and kept from burning through it's confinement, yes this holds true. This leads back to the magnetic fields and their strength vs. acceleration, gyroscopic force(the gas is moving), tensile strength of the glass involved, contraction/expansion through heat, etc...
I'm not saying it's impossible, just highly impractical and dangerous for an Earth to orbit or reentry vehicle. The stresses on such craft are enormous. Once IN space it's a different matter, but I still say running a liquid lead or other metal as coolant for a "hot" reactor, and then using the coolant flow to preheat and ionize the propellant for an Ionic drive is much more safe and practical.
----------------
Sometimes a Hypography Forum Administrator
"With a big enough engine, even a brick will fly." -Law of Aerospace
