Request for Magneto Inertial Confinement Fusion engine model

[FreeThinker]

I'm looking for a good model for  new type of engine I would like to introduce in KSPI-E the Magneto Inertial Confinement Fusion Engine

The fusion engine supposed to look something like this:

 

 

And here a Youtube video

 

If anyone could create a working engine model I and all KSPI use would appreciate it.

The Big advantage of this engine is that it one of the few Fusion engine that it is small enough to be put at the back of a small spacecraft and does not require huge amount of power to be effective

Edited March 18, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

pics aren't showing.

[FreeThinker]

23 minutes ago, nli2work said:

pics aren't showing.

Ok, what about now?

[nli2work]

I see them now... how big should it be? 1.25m? 2.5m? all 3 stacks sizes? It kinda operates like the nuclear pulse engine? Looks like pellets are injected into the drive/shroud one at a time?

[FreeThinker]

Well, it needs to be detailed enough for a 2.5m part, but I will allow it to be tweakscaled to 1.25m

What is important is that it needs to have something that can be recognized as a magnetic nozzle at the back and a magnetic inertial fusion compartment (the middle part), which is clearly visible on picture 2 and 3..

To make it rely look realistic look at the first video.

 

 

 

Edited March 6, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

Ok. I'll see what I can do

[FreeThinker]

Great

[nli2work]

attempting to do something inline with zzz's stuff. Mainsail for scale. looks like I missed the shock absorbers... is this thing going to do the pulse action like the video?

 

Edited March 8, 2016 by nli2work

[FreeThinker]

Itls looking promising and yes If possible , but I wouldn't exactly know how to create pulse animation. It would probably require either a special pulsed exhaust animation, or some interleaving engine trickery (continuously turning the trust on and off). The problem of interleaving however it would confuse KSP tools as acceleration would not be constant, therefore some custom animation which allows me the pulse rate would be best.Alternative we could imagne the the pulsing is fast enough (25 pulses per second) that it become a continiously stream, which if you want any significant amount of thrust for KSP isn't so bad.

Edited March 9, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

We can do it w/ FXAnimateThrottle... the shock absorbers would become compressed more from increased throttle. There would be no back/forth movement. You might try modifying the stock FXAnimateThrottle so it loops the throttle animation at different rates instead of sliding from 0 to max frame#.

I think the nuke pulse engine mod just timed an animation with each pulse? the animation can be slowed down or sped up to match the pulse rate... or possibly two nodes that you lerp the free moving section to/from, along the line of thrust. little more coding, but won't need special animation. either way it'll need some special code. 

FX would have to be timed as well.

 

Edited March 9, 2016 by nli2work

[FreeThinker]

I don't need FXAnimateThrottle.KSPI-E Actualy  already does some exhaust Animation intensity manipulation, I can use it  also to make the exaust  look as if it is pulsting. Now if the engine models also contains some shock absorber animation, I can sychonise the pulse exactly with the shock absorbing aninmation. It should look pretty cool.

Edited March 10, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

ok, sounds like that'll work out well. I can set up a looping pulse anim and you just cycle it at some rate based om throttle in KSPI-E

[FreeThinker]

Regarding the model, As always devil is in the details. Studying the first animation, at 0.34 3 rings are visible which are currently clearly missing in the first initial Magneto Inertial Fusion engine model, namely driver coils

I propose you replace the 6 "Stumbs" by a cyclinder with 3 methal ribs, that way it will look more similar to the animation and all technical pictures, The 3 ribs represent the driver coils, which are fundemental for the functionality of this fusion engine. As seen in the animation, the driver coils genate closing magnetic fields that press the methal foils together to create inertial fusion reaction.in the nozzle.

Edited March 10, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

You think all that stuff would be exposed all the time? Seems unlikely. I combined these three bits for the 3 sections...
 
top section the fusion core

Linear driver section, injects the metal foil over plasma, compress and push it into expander

 
expander bell (I know that's a detector, but it looks better than a cone with rings round the outside)

 

[FreeThinker]

37 minutes ago, nli2work said:

You think all that stuff would be exposed all the time? Seems unlikely. I combined these three bits for the 3 sections...
 
top section the fusion core

 

Although this is also a form Inertial Fusion, the method of achieving fusion is very different, instead of high focus laser/ electron guns, several magnetic rings are used to crush the fusion fuel. Magneto Inertial Fusion combines both Magnetic Rings and the Pulsed Crushing of Inertial Confinement Fusion. 

This engine reactor can only use Lithium as a propellant, as the lithium serves as a medium to aborb the neutron energy and turn it into useull kenetic energy and as the mass to propell the ship forward . therefore it would not be logicial the model have eletro guns "stubs"like used in a reactor:

 

This kind of fusion might be more suitable for energy production, but not so well for propulsion as you need the eletron guns surronding the chamber,

Note that I plan to create such reactor also for the KSPI, it would be a thermal energy only reactor, which will be usefull due to it's small size and mass.

Edited March 10, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

Ah.. I see. very intersting! I'll make the changes.

[FreeThinker]

37 minutes ago, nli2work said:

You think all that stuff would be exposed all the time? Seems unlikely. I combined these three bits for the 3 sections...
 

Linear driver section, injects the metal foil over plasma, compress and push it into expander

 

 

The rings are great . Now if you replace the 6 electro guns "stumbs" by 2 additional driver coils "rings", it would be the technically realsitic. It's the attention to technical details that matter in the long run.

Edited March 10, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

The shock absorbers are under the shroud, won't be seen much, saves time in texturing and baking. about 0.3m taller than the Mainsail. The whole affair under the shroud travels up ~0.3m for the pulse anim.

I saved the stubs and round core... if I have time I can turn it into a reactor

Edited March 10, 2016 by nli2work

[FreeThinker]

Great, the rings are making it a much more realistic Magnetic Inertial Confinement engine

But for a minute I though the hat on the top was a shadow shield, to block any Neutron and Gama radiation but if you say it is a shroud around the shock absorber, so it seems ok.

Notice that once Nertia release his Radio Activity mod with line of sight radiation simulation, I intend to integrate it into KSPI as radiation is a big thing which is currently missing. Then we also going to need some separate parts that can act as radiation shield. between the engine/reactors and the rest of the ship. Any kerbal of electronic part that is hit without the shadow shield should be properly fried

Edit: I just realized that the wide Shroud at the top might give some problem then creating the launch shroud as it would make the diameter unnecessarily wide. Perhaps it would be best to make the Shock absorber shroud straight, which make it easier to launch it into space.

Edited March 12, 2016 by FreeThinker

[FreeThinker]

please look at last edit previous post.

Edited March 12, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

Gotcha, it's meant to be the shadow shield section from the video above. I'll change it so the shroud for shock absorbers is @ 2.5m diameter. 

nromals baked. I'll send you a copy with the anim so you can work on the configs while I finish up the texture over th enext week.

Edited March 12, 2016 by nli2work

[FreeThinker]

Perfect, I think we are ready for texture Mode

[FreeThinker]

Alright, I started creating the config

It's looking better than expected already, except for something I can't quite understand what I find inside the fusion chamber.

Now the only thing the model is realy missing are some engine fairlings, which make t easy to use

Edited March 16, 2016 by FreeThinker

[nli2work]

Re packed the UVs for better use of texture space. fixed that nipple... It's innie instead of outie now. makes more sense that way. changed the scheme to look more like the thermal rocket nozzle. still trying to get rid of the damn seams in the AO map... fairing panels are in the works, 2 halves like the nuclear engine, gonna have to be a 2nd texture though... hopeful nothing too big. she's hefty enough as it is. 

Edited March 16, 2016 by nli2work

[nli2work]

nearly ready. gonna throw it into KSP tonight and see how things look