The "Viscoelectric Effect"
The last article in this series discussed how friction between particles in the air can lead to a spontaneous explosion in places like wheat granaries, coal mines, and fuel tankers. An excess of free-floating charged particles in the air can lead to arc flashes. When an arc flash pops up in the same enclosed vicinity of combustible materials like flour, methane, or petroleum fumes, it can lead to an explosion often resulting in death.
This hypothesis has sound scientific theoretical backing, but there is little or no hard evidence to prove that this is what really happens at the molecular level. Mechanical engineering Professor Emeritus Robert Balmer of UW-Milwaukee is currently working on an experiment that hopes to prove this hypothesis correct.
“This research explains why explosions occur, but how do you prevent that? It’s an effect of nature,” Balmer says. He suggests that if the phenomenon of these seemingly random explosions is understood, there could be ways to prevent them.
In the labs of the Engineering and Mathematical Sciences building of UWM, a wacky-looking apparatus is being built to generate friction-based ionic charge (pictured above). He calls his experiment “The Viscoelectric Effect.”
The experiment is like something out of Back to the Future. It involves placing a metal cylinder in a cake pan holding some kerosene. Kerosene, as we mentioned in the last article, is a dielectric fluid, which makes it easy to create and detect an electrical charge in the fluid that Balmer is trying to create. A machine spins the can back and forth, creating friction between the can and the kerosene. Balmer's computer measures and records the electric charge created from this friction.
Balmer's hypothesis suggests that if the friction creates an electric charge in the can and kerosene, it can be said that tiny particles clashing around in granaries, coal mines, and fuel tankers also hold an electric charge in the air in which they reside. These tiny particles will react with the charge-less particles to create an arc flash. When arc flashes get close to the combustible materials that are innate to granaries, coal mines, and fuel tankers, they react violently to create an explosion that can kill many people and level workshops.
Although his experiment received no funding due to its non-traditional approach, Balmer is confident that he and his undergraduate students can prove electricity’s effect on this phenomenon.
“It’s very difficult when you’re publishing a brand new idea,” Balmer says. “Nobody wants to believe you.”
Balmer hopes to have his work finished by the spring and to have his work published to inform the world of the dangers of free-floating ions, culminating years of research that has been an uphill battle.
“It was hard to get people on board. In order to get an ironclad article together, I had to perform a few of my own experiments that were absolutely indisputable.”
Thus ends the two-part series on Balmer’s studies in thermodynamics. Stay tuned to see where So What Science will take you next.
Cheers, nerds.
