Type S3 Far Scout/Courier

[TamsinP]

Has anyone else considered that unrefined fuel makes little sense? Hydrogen is hydrogen, isn’t it? At best it’s a big “coffee filter” contraption and it would make sense that it higher tech levels. It would be functionally included or unnecessary.

The are two possibilities of what unrefined means.

1. Mostly hydrogen, but with impurities (eg from skimming gas giants); in this case refining is done to remove the impurities

2. A mix of hydrogen isotopes (protium, deuterium, tritium); in this case, refining is done to remove certain isotopes to get a pure version of the isotope you want (almost certainly pure protium, given the relative occurrence of the heavier isotopes; also because using deuterium or tritium for fusion would generate a lot of neutron radiation which would require extensive shielding).

 

[Condottiere]

Someone needed a three hundred percent markup, to justify his Christmas bonus.

Though I'm told, in some parts, ground water is free, as long as you own the property.

 

[Dragoner]

IMTU refinement is conversion to metastable negative mass protium.

 

[Spinward Flow]

Hydrogen is hydrogen, isn’t it?

What's the PURITY LEVEL of that Hydrogen, then?
No "contaminants" in it?

 

[kilemall]

Has anyone else considered that unrefined fuel makes little sense? Hydrogen is hydrogen, isn’t it? At best it’s a big “coffee filter” contraption and it would make sense that it higher tech levels. It would be functionally included or unnecessary.

Hydrogen is not just plain hydrogen.

For fusion power plants it’s deuterium and tritium, which are very small percentages of general hydrogen.

For jump drive, depends on your conception of what it is using the hydrogen for. It may require more deuterium, or may require pure protium.

Then you have the feedstocks, either gas giants or water.

With gas giants no telling what methanes, ammonia or other gasses would get pulled in and need to be sorted out.

With water/ice there is separation of oxygen plus clearing out impurities.

Pretty impressive little refiner. It stays IMTU.

 

[TamsinP]

For example, the composition of Jupiter's atmosphere is:

89%±2.0% hydrogen (pure protium-protium)
10%±2.0% helium
0.3%±0.1% methane
0.026%±0.004% ammonia
0.0028%±0.001% hydrogen deuteride (1 protium atom combined with 1 deuterium atom).
0.0006%±0.0002% ethane
0.0004%±0.0004% water