OT: Vern,
"Hotzone, old friend, what 'special gas' are you talking about? The "Lifting Gas Technology" that has been bandied about here and on RB has nothing to do with creating a new gas. Instead, it is the way the onboard lifting gas is managed. It would be more correctly referred to as, "Lifting Gas Management System.,"
No new gases. Helium was the gas of choice when I first designed the Strat. I would love to use hydrogen, but it needs to be very carefully managed. I couldn't get fire insurance on a hangar if the airship were filled with hydrogen. "
How funny it is to be reading your posts about hydrogen and its safety after watching a show a few nights ago about the Hindenburg . It was basically a story about a guy who dabbles in the hydrogen area and wanted to find out if hydrogen was the true cause of the Hindenburg busting into flames. The show was very informative. While watching the show, I could see the strat in its possibilities … not the catching on fire part.. lol but the grandness of the idea. Anyhoo… his research brought him to the conclusion that it wasn’t the hydrogen that caused the ship to go up in flames, but the cause was found to be the “dope” they used on the covering of the airship. They added powdered aluminum to the doping compound (It was to help in blocking out heat so the hydrogen wouldn’t expand as much) and it would be the same as adding gasoline to the mixture. The guy for his concussion to his theory took a swatch of the left over Hindenburg and used static to light it on fire.. and WHOOSH it went up in flames. I’m not sure why I'm posting this to you, lol because I’m sure your aware of all this , I just felt connected is all =)
PdxLou
AI
