Research Project
A piece of heating wire was placed into the reservoir filled with alcohol. The chamber was then put onto the metal plate which sat on the dry ice.
It took a long time (~5 hours) to get it up and running, this was due to experimenting with voltage to achieve the optimimum temperature. Though, once running, it was very sucessful.
The chamber was first put on show not long after this first test run. Having found the right voltage it was possible to get the chamber running much quicker. The sensitive region was very high and the tracks were numerous and very visible. Unfortunately the projector was relied on as a source of light for reasons previously mentioned. On this day however, the bulb blew and another projector was used. The new one emitted a deep blue light which lit up the chamber very nicely. It would be worthwhile investigating the bulb used.
There are further improvements that could be made. A spring board base could be built into the box, this would press up against the dry ice, as it melts, keeping it in contact with a metal plate which is held in place. This is instead of sitting the plate onto the dry ice and letting it sink with it, causing the chamber to sink in turn. This would prevent the sensitive region dipping out of the lit area. Though this is dependent on the final lighting setup.
It would be useful to anodise the metal plate, as opposed to it being spray-painted. This would keep a uniform black at all times. At the moment the paint can crack and smudge.
The how-to guide was tested by asking someone (who hadn't built one before and hadn't been in the lab to see the prototypes that had been built) to try and build a working chamber. It turned out sucessfully, however a few additions were made to the guide on the recommendations made.
It took a long time (~5 hours) to get it up and running, this was due to experimenting with voltage to achieve the optimimum temperature. Though, once running, it was very sucessful.
The chamber was first put on show not long after this first test run. Having found the right voltage it was possible to get the chamber running much quicker. The sensitive region was very high and the tracks were numerous and very visible. Unfortunately the projector was relied on as a source of light for reasons previously mentioned. On this day however, the bulb blew and another projector was used. The new one emitted a deep blue light which lit up the chamber very nicely. It would be worthwhile investigating the bulb used.
There are further improvements that could be made. A spring board base could be built into the box, this would press up against the dry ice, as it melts, keeping it in contact with a metal plate which is held in place. This is instead of sitting the plate onto the dry ice and letting it sink with it, causing the chamber to sink in turn. This would prevent the sensitive region dipping out of the lit area. Though this is dependent on the final lighting setup.
It would be useful to anodise the metal plate, as opposed to it being spray-painted. This would keep a uniform black at all times. At the moment the paint can crack and smudge.
The how-to guide was tested by asking someone (who hadn't built one before and hadn't been in the lab to see the prototypes that had been built) to try and build a working chamber. It turned out sucessfully, however a few additions were made to the guide on the recommendations made.
The Test
