41

Geology, Palaeontology & Archaeology / Re: What produces this strange chipped pattern on the surface of this stone?

« on: 14/10/2020 17:51:59 »

It looks like hexagons to me, straight lines,  most efficient construction method I believe

Yes, but it also occurs incidentally whenever items are packed together eg honeycomb.

It could be made by the same process that produce d the giants causeway, maybe even by the same giant.

Unlikely, the giants cause way is due to cooling volcanic rock. This is most definately organic in nature, I had been thinking along the lines of pipe rock, but with hindsight it is a piece of coral, as mentioned above.

If global warming raises the sea levels maybe cambridgeshire will go under the sea again, and corals will grow there again. But then again since the acidification of the oceans is increasingly killing of the corals, maybe corals will eventually become extinct.

42

Geology, Palaeontology & Archaeology / Re: What produces this strange chipped pattern on the surface of this stone?

« on: 12/10/2020 19:07:08 »

I was walking in the fields here in Cambridgeshire the other day and picked up this interesting piece. I'm wondering if anyone can explain to me how this pattern forms?

CHRIS-STONE.jpg (801.88 kB . 2431x2524 - viewed 8348 times)

It might be caused by trace fossils of something like worms. The cambridgeshire area I think is formed from sediments both from marine and river deposits. The marks might be caused by something like prehistoric lugworms unless of course its soft clay thats been laying on a bed of pebbles and not a fossilized piece of rock.

43

Technology / Re: Which electric motor is best for electric bikes and scooters?

« on: 08/10/2020 17:13:42 »

Because some bunch of fools decided to destroy the agreement about free movement of goods which, as you say, had been working fine for decades.

If you want to retain the trade deficit, just decide (no need to agree) not to charge any import duties on goods of EU origin, for as long as the EU reciprocates. No action required, but if the EU doesn't reciprocate, a 50% levy on German cars will restore the status quo in a matter of minutes.

If the UK wants to trade with the EU a trade agreement is needed, without an agreement, the UK MAY be able to revert to trade deals with various European countries that were never cancelled when the UK joined the EU. The EU will not import goods that do not comply with European standards, which are created by EU members which the UK has decided not to influence anymore through Brexit. The UK's influence will likely be even further diminished in the near future via the breakup of the UK. Northern Ireland is now seriously considering leaving the UK, and forming a new country with Southern Ireland. Scotland will separate from the UK given half a chance and rejoin the EU, especially now England has decided to force a Brexit deal against the overwhelming wishes of the other UK member countries to stay in the EU.

In what way does Brexit, farm subsidies etc relate to a thread on efficient motors for cars and bikes. Maybe subsidies for fusion reactors from European research grants are related. Or maybe charitable holidays for small 500 acre estate holders payed by Europe, who otherwise would go bankrupt through inability to compete with factory farms owned by supermarket chains, who also collect subsidies, or the imported grain from America where the farms are a tiny bit bigger, and need some where to dump their excess production. I think your farmer friend is likely going to sell up or go bust. Maybe he can get a job in a supermarket stacking shelves once his subsidies dry up.

Imported products already cost more in the UK, via the collapse of the Pound. UK exports are likely being protected at the moment due to the weakening of the pound, but after Brexit, without trade deals who is going to buy anything from the UK. 

44

Technology / Re: Which electric motor is best for electric bikes and scooters?

« on: 07/10/2020 21:17:06 »

Specifications > Different countries with different resources dont all need one solution controlled by multinationals.

Tell that to the EU!

More to the point, EVs will be manufactured by various companies in various countries to various specifications to suit various customers. The joy of diesel cars (or even gasoline nowadays) is you can refuel them all from the same source. Imagine if you could only put Volvo petrol in a Volvo, and it wouldn't work in a Ford - there would be an outcry from Volvo owners because Waitrose supermarkets don't sell petrol!  We already have a problem with incompatible charging sockets and power specifications, even in those rare cases where the forecourt charger actually works.

Government-led standardisation will reproduce the 47 different kinds of incompatible domestic mains plugs currently listed by the International Electrotechnical Commission. Industry-led standardisation will be a bit closer to the USB socket on your computer - apart from the Applecart, of course.

The EU is not a controlled by multinationals, or lobby groups as yet! It is however influenced by them providing experts on the various groups that create new regulations.

The fact that electricity is now 230VAC across europe, allows electrical appliances to be sold across the whole of europe. A simple adaptor plug is all that is required to use your 3 pin UK plug socket in european socket.

Diesel Cars are manufactured by various companies in various countries to various specifications to suit various customers. The joy of EVs is you can refuel them all from the same voltage source. Imagine if you could only Electricity in a Volvo, and it wouldn't work in a Ford - there would be an outcry from Volvo owners because Waitrose supermarkets don't sell Electricity!  We already have a no problem with elecricity as we developed switched mode power supplies years ago which can handle a huge fluctuation in voltage levels. In fact a SMP developed for Polish, Spanish Portuguese, German, Irish supplies will all currently work in the UK.

Diesel engines are not suitable for all countries without oil. Solar and wind are not suitable for countries without sun or wind.  Multinationals control the oil supply, and want people globally to use there product. Gullible people buy what they are told to buy by advertisers. Some even insist on using old diesel cars, which are being phased out in europe.

45

Technology / Re: Which electric motor is best for electric bikes and scooters?

« on: 07/10/2020 10:32:30 »

They have all just got back from work too. There is no private road transport between 6 and 10 pm because we all have expensive, useless electric cars and they can't all be charged at once because that would have involved the privatised electricity industry actually investing in infrastructure.

The government policy of prohibiting the sale of internal combustion cars is of course a cunning plan to increase the profits of the privatised diesel-engined bus companies. One size may not fit all, so the rest will have to go shoeless. No problem, kid, the next bus to the hospital is on Thursday. Maybe. 

Come to think of it, the New Dawn has already arrived.  A friend was told to get a COVID test. Turned out that, as a non-essential worker, the nearest she could drive to was 150 miles away, but there was a walk-in about 10 miles distant with the requirement that "You must walk or cycle to the test station." Just what she needs at 91 years old and not feeling well.  So the tiny number of COVID positive tests is because only the fittest can get tested.

A more flexible arrangement in work hours, and more working from home, might go some way to answering your first paragraph.

A government conspiracy/plan to reduce the amount of vehicles on the road in favour of public transport . 

Umm! Covid-19 or a mutation will if the politicians do nothing, take out a huge chunk of the human population, thus reducing the need for all the internal combustion engines, sorting out global warming at the same time and the politicians dont need to do a thing.

Specifications > Different countries with different resources dont all need one solution controlled by multinationals.

46

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 06/10/2020 16:29:26 »

I'm just about to rack some mead

mead gives a man a halo!

Distillation is legal where I am!

I just had an excellent success, in my opinion, distilling the lees from 30 litres of red wine I racked, producing a couple of bottles of grade A agua dente. It really has an excellent flavour. Possibly the best I have tasted so far! Next year I will be distilling the lees and not trying to extract the last drops of wine.

47

Technology / Re: Which electric motor is best for electric bikes and scooters?

« on: 06/10/2020 16:17:22 »

I assumed that we would continue to use diesel for long-distance buses, trucks, tractors and site machinery - I just took the figures for private cars. Apparently the hydrogen public transport project in Orkney is doing well - even faster refuelling than diesel, and Orkney is not short of wind.

Burning hydrogen in a recommissioned coal or gas power station will run the trains reliably: you just need new boiler jets.

It might even help with power station loading, with smart chargers the power stations could choose when to charge a vehicle within a set time period.

And there's the rub. The whole point of a car is that it allows you to go where you want, when you want - like a horse or even your own legs, but faster. Daily commuting is quickly going out of fashion for most people, but if you work from home you need to be able to make occasional journeys when business demands, not when the wind blows (remember we won't have any coal or gas power in the foreseeable future, and there is no money to build nukes at the required rate.

Cars are a large capital expenditure for most people. A small investment in a battery charger at home, would be the obvious solution for most.

That doesn't make sense at all! If I've spent £30k or more on a new electric car, I'm going to spend another £500 on a fast charge point so I can go to the pub after dinner instead of having to wait until morning just to go to work. We do not have the infrastructure to support 20,000,000 fast chargers, and never will.

Again it is requirements and specification. Not everyone needs a fast charge unit. Why not have your missis drive you to the pub in her car, then you can drink. A slow re-charge overnight will then suffice.

ABB have some charger offerings. Much of what has already been addressed on the thread is discussed in this link from intel https://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/solution-briefs/transportation-abb-terra-smart-connect-brief.pdf

Pub landlords might have an excellent investment opportunity to attract their regulars with a fast charge unit, it could revitalize pub trade in the UK, same goes for cafes and restaurants.

I agree with Alan that long range heavy transport will best be served by petrol/diesel engines until the oil  runs out.But city runabouts need to be small economical electric no pollution cars with a little 20 kg battery that a single person can swap for another quickly.
The electric motor must be light and just powerful enough to get around the city.  Possibly, equipmake or some similar startup could gang up with a nearby university to develop this unit quickly.

Electric motors are a lot lighter already than the batteries required to power them. For Electric propulsion the problem is the energy storage. Electric Batteries are expensive, and perhaps not the only solution.

Super Capacitors could provide peak current demands in conjunction with a smaller battery or as was suggested earlier on on this thread using hydrogen fuel cells perhaps. https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/how-do-hydrogen-fuel-cell-vehicles-work#:~:text=Fuel%20cell%20vehicles%20use%20hydrogen,electricity%2C%20which%20runs%20a%20motor.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_cell

48

Technology / Re: Which electric motor is best for electric bikes and scooters?

« on: 04/10/2020 17:17:30 »

Most vehicles spend a large amount of time parked, when they can easily be charged if the facilities were available.

My italics. There are now 35,000,000 cars in the UK. If their electric replacements are to be as useable as the present vehicles, we will need to install about 20,000,000 standardised kerbside charging points and 15GW of continuously available electricity. I don't see an incompetent government or its bankrupt successor being able to make this happen, nor do I smell much enthusiasm from the privatised electricity companies.

By useable it comes down to range and ability to recharge. Not everyone needs the the same specification of vehicle

Cars are a large capital expenditure for most people. A small investment in a battery charger at home, would be the obvious solution for most. Most people are not sales reps filling up their cars 2 or 3 times a week. The point being most people do not need a vehicle with a 500 mile range, those people could quite easily put their cars on charge when they returned home, after a short commute. It might even help with power station loading, with smart chargers the power stations could choose when to charge a vehicle within a set time period.

Denmark is a market leader in this technology a quick google flagged up this https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/5k8zvv8g70q5-en.pdf?expires=1601828883&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=579B7D01CB6521C6F5827147B70F6A7B Smart Grids might be the way to go.

As an aside for the OP GEC Alsthom developed the mag lev train technology used in Japan. It was never implemented in the UK because of politics and privatisation of the rail network

49

Technology / Re: Which electric motor is best for electric bikes and scooters?

« on: 04/10/2020 15:15:19 »

My vote is still for hydrogen. Whilst electric vehicles are a Good Thing, in a city the problem of kerbside recharging or 5 minute charging at a garage, has not really been solved.

Yes Hydrogen is good option if you want to maintain the same specifications for range and power. But most people do not need the range, or a 4x4 to run the kids to school.

The problem is specification. Most commuters fill up once a week. People dropping the kids of at school or going back wards and forwards to the shops dont normally need to fill up weekly. Most vehicles spend a large amount of time parked, when they can easily be charged if the facilities were available.

AC Electric motors can be controlled extremely efficiently by modern control methods, If its acceleration you want, electric has currently got the records https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-36606500

50

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 04/10/2020 15:02:32 »

Thanks for that little ditty.

A ditty is a song.

I dont use Sodium-Metabisulphate because some claim it introduces the smell of burnt matches,

The smell of burned sulphur is the same whether it is from potassium bisulphite or sodium bisulphite.

I dont think either additive are going to reach the levels for combustion in a cask of wine required to make them decompose. K2S2O5 → K2SO3 + SO2 and happily my wine doesnt smell of sulphur.

As a complete beginner to the making of fine wines, I am taking advice, and I read sodium metabisulphate is claimed by some to leave a hint of burnt matches. Since I cant buy it where I live, it is not an issue for me. From the little I have found out about making wine it seems there is no right and wrong way. Some dont use any additives and do alright. I am using k-meta so I do not windup with vinegar, and I used cultured yeasts and nutrients to control the flavour and any off odours, such as methane. 

What in some wines apart from the alcohol cause some people to get headaches? How about low levels of methane which can be produced if the wrong nutrients are supplied to a yeast during fermentation. Maybe low levels of methanol which I understand can be produced during fermentation from woody stalks, or even seeds.

Does aerating the wine remove off gases, locked in the wine, and if so could aerating a wine remove the cause of hangovers? 

51

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 04/10/2020 14:29:55 »

find another excuse for his wine headaches.

Has he considered alcohol?
Has he considered the placebo effect's darker cousin?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nocebo

I did wonder if on occasion his wine might have some methanol in it. Red wine made on grapes skins and stalks maybe rather than just the fruit might maybe. The woody stalks might develop Methanol rather than Ethanol, but happily since I dont get hangovers I am using k-meta.

52

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 04/10/2020 12:24:53 »

do you need to add a bit more Campden tablet for the UK gallon?

No
Campden is in England and the tablets are the right size for a proper gallon
The Americans have been getting it wrong.
.

I am dosing at the recommended dose of 50ppm.

50parts of what per million?
50 parts of SO2?
or SO3--
or Na2S2O5
or K2S2O5?

Those Americans keep getting it wrong, but they do make more wine than the Brits. I didnt know that Chipping Campden, is where they were developed https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campden_tablet#:~:text=The%20name%20Campden%20tablet%20comes,.%2C%20who%20developed%20the%20tablet. Thanks for that little ditty.

Potassium Metabisulphate K2S2O5 is what I have been using.

I dont use Sodium-Metabisulphate because some claim it introduces the smell of burnt matches, also it is not available here

53

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 04/10/2020 12:01:18 »

All wines contain sulphites naturally. There is a recommended max level for sulphites in wine. Apparently due to some possible allergic reactions.

If your friend has asthma there is a 5-10% chance he has a sulphite sensitivity, however, as you say there is a lot more sulphites in other foods and he ought to recognise his sensitivity through those.

For wine the maximum legal limit in the United States is 350 mg/l. Wine ranges from about 5 mg/L (5 parts per million) to about 200 mg/L, a good dry red wine typically has about 50 mg/l.
There are wines which claim to be sulphite free, mainly in the organic, biodynamic and vegan markets. The problem is that under EU & US law a wine below 10mg/l is considered sulphite free, so can be legally free, but not totally free.

No he doesnt have asthma, hes a ENT medical doctor retired, knows something about everything. He argues aerating the wine does not remove sulphites which he insists give him a headache.

I have dosed my wine twice so far, once before pressing, and once after the first racking. I am dosing at the recommended dose of 50ppm. 50mg/litre > 100litres of wine gets 5g, or 1 teaspoon.

Even after 10 doses at this rate, I will not have introduced that much k-meta into my wine, and since it evaporates, my friend is going to have to find another excuse for his wine headaches.

How do you measure the sulphite level, if at all, in your Chateau Calverd ?

I assume that most of it is whatever I put in, generally one Campden tablet per gallon. Measure? This is an artisan product!

I couldnt find any Campden tablets so I used k-meta powder, for my wine this year. Next year when I have learned what not to do, through my mistakes, I might call my wines artisan wine. This year I am being lucky so far, the mistakes are not so bad. ie I have a deep rose instead of a dark red wine. 
 
This wine making business to me seems to be more good luck than judgement/measurement so far.

Measure ?? Dosing in ppm is easier to work out in litres rather than gallons. With US gallons being the standard measure on most wine making forums, do you need to add a bit more Campden tablet for the UK gallon?

Using either Campden tablets or k-meta at the prescribed levels makes it very difficult to achieve anything near the legal limits for wine.

54

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 04/10/2020 11:16:12 »

K2O5S2 oxidizes to form what?

KHSO4
I can't see hydrogen peroxide working very well. It's got to find a few hundred ppm of sulfite among a few percent of alcohol, not to mention all the other stuff it could react with.

I do not understand how k-meta can be removed by aeration or splash racking as is claimed by some.

The sulphite is in equilibrium with SO2.
And aeration will remove that as a gas.

Thats what I wanted to know Thanks.

55

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 03/10/2020 18:07:12 »

sulfites (sulphites) are unlikely to volatilize--you can get rid of them by oxidation, but why do you want to? They are protecting the wine by essentially serving as sacrificial reducing agents (oxygen in the air will react with sulfite before it oxidizes components of the wine)

My friend reckons he gets headaches from them so, if he can aerate a wine and accelerate oxidation thus removing sulphates prior to drinking the wine, his theory on his headaches might be removed?

K2O5S2 oxidizes to form what?

56

Chemistry / Re: Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 03/10/2020 18:02:31 »

The whole point of adding metabisulfites to wine is to preserve the flavor and inhibit secondary fermentation. Boiling the wine will leave you with a residue of sticky grape sugars and a tiny trace of potassium sulfite, and some rather raw brandy with a hint of sulfur dioxide in the distillate.

Given the choice, I'd rather drink my Mouton Rothschild as it came in the bottle, along with whatever additives the good burghers of Pauillac have deemed fit to use for the last 170 years.

My own garden produces an adequate grape juice, and I sometimes add a hint of  Na₂S₂O₅  to stop it turning into Chateau Calverd, or after adequate fermentation to prevent the Grand Cru turning into expensive vinegar - Sarson's Malt is a better match with chips.

I am new to making wine. My wine so far this year tastes a lot better than a lot of shop bought wine. The only big mistake was pressing my first reds too soon, giving me a rose, instead of a red. Still tastes good though

All wines contain sulphites naturally. There is a recommended max level for sulphites in wine. Apparently due to some possible allergic reactions.

I do not understand how k-meta can be removed by aeration or splash racking as is claimed by some.

Vigorously aerating a dodgy wine often improves it, to the point that it is drinkable. Even a good wine can be improved by aerating it.

K-meta is used as a preservative, but people sometimes accidentally over dose not me as yet, although I did have a slow ferment on my white wine, which I attribute to k-meta. I understand even using k-meta secondary fermentation  can start again. If you dont have test equipment for k-meta 50ppm/litre potassium meta-bisulphate is the usual dose before adding yeast, if you are not doing a wild ferment that is. 50ppm/litre is then added after the first racking to like you say kill any bacteria, and hopefully any remaining yeast, thus preserving the flavour.

(Has this site got an american spell checker ? flavor or flavour )

I have a friend who reckons sulphite gives him a head ache, which I think is wrong as it is used as a preservative on all kinds of foods. 

I have read that aerating a wine that has been over sulphited removes the sulphite. I have also read that this is wrong! Is either statement correct ?.

PS How do you measure the sulphite level, if at all, in your Chateau Calverd ? 

57

Chemistry / Can Sulphites be removed from wine other than by adding hydrogen peroxide?

« on: 02/10/2020 14:55:01 »

Potassium metabisulphate is added to wine as a preservative and is referred to as sulphites

Can Sulphites be removed from wine by any other mechanism other than adding hydrogen peroxide.

Evaporation in cooking and aeration are suggested. Ethanol Alcohol starts to evaporate at about 78C. At what temperature do sulphites evaporate if at all?.
 

58

Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / Re: What happens inside a black hole, and how do black holes evaporate?

« on: 27/09/2020 18:07:35 »

What happens to 'space' inside is that it conforms to gravity and 'shrinks'. And so do you and your meter stick, as defined from a outside far away. Not to you locally defined though. The same goes for the time component, as from a outside it 'slows down', and as the inside is a singularity the 'center' should be a place where a outside observer would say that your clock has stopped, as far as I see. And the same should then go for your 'size' as a guess. Aka, you 'disappeared'

Is that correct?

Space curvature causes gravity, which can be viewed as the elongation of space not the contraction. I understand Infinite space time curvature inside a blackhole, does not mean space shrinks to nothing.

No one knows what goes on inside a black hole, lots of speculations exist. To an outside observer the blackhole might appear to be small, but to someone inside, it might appear very very big. The blackhole itself likely rips apart molecules transforming them into photons creating a photon star inside the event horizon. 

59

Chemistry / Could H2S produced in wine be influenced by the source of added sulphur?

« on: 29/06/2020 21:02:54 »

Wine making involves the addition of sulphates to kill of harmful bacteria and preserve the wine.

On occasion H2S can be produced in the wine due to badly nourished yeast.

SO2 added to wine comes in liquid solution H2SO3, and as Potassium metabisulphate K2S2O5. These react with the wine producing SO2.

Could H2S produced in wine making be in any way influenced by the source of SO2 in the wine?

60

Complementary Medicine / Re: How many foods are there that help Arthritis sufferers?

« on: 28/04/2020 11:24:21 »

More along the lines of gut bacteria https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/gut-microbiome-and-health . There are too many even more interesting links in the references in this link to post.

It seems RA and many other immune system/health problems are likely triggered by an imbalance in gut bacteria. which is caused by what you eat, or dont eat.