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Sapphire: A Liquid That Won't Get Things Wet
eaglebtc writes "Tuesday on Good Morning America, a representative from Tyco Fire & Security demonstrated an amazing new substance called Sapphire: a water-like fluid that does not get things wet. He filled a small fish tank with Sapphire and submerged a book, a laptop, and a flat panel TV. Both electronics were turned on when submerged; all three items came out completely unharmed. Click here for a slideshow of the demonstration. The official name for Sapphire is actually Novec 1230. Read about it here (PDF). Tyco sees practical applications of Sapphire in fire extinguisher systems for museums and libraries. By the same token of practicality, regular readers of Slashdot probably have something else in mind: total-immersion watercooling. Just think of the possibilities!"
Sorry to say but this wont be a very good immersion cooling solution, the heat capacity of this stuff is WAY less than water, at least according to the info i could find on it. As well the toxicity is not something you'd want to be exposed to on a daily basis, i just feel sorry for that poor guy on TV who was blithely sticking his hands into the tank of this stuff and such, hope he doesnt need his liver for anything if he does this sort of thing on a regular basis.
drunk chemists
Why give a new substance the name of an older substance?
You could always do a cooling tower like system. The saphire boils, turns into a gas, and then in the cooling stack condensates back into a liquid. Also it should be noted that 3M has a liquid product that does the same thing as saphire and has a higher boiling point. It probably still gets things wet, which saphire aparently doesn't, but it is not electicly conductive. Its also really expensive! I think THG did an article on the stuff a few years back.
There is or can be built a machine that can simulate any physical object. -Church-Turing principle
Not if they are cooled. The real question is what is this stuff's heat capacity and thermal conductivity. (I.e., how much heat can I stuff in to a given mass of this substance, while staying below a certain temperature (like 49C) and how quickly can I suck it up and push it out?)
There are a lot of things that are poisonous to humans in the environment. Being poisonous in large doses is not a problem.
The problems would occur if it is poisonous in small or cumulative doses, or if it breaks down into something that is. If it clears out quickly, and does no lasting harm (to humans, plants, animals, land, water or air) while doing so, it is environmentally safe. Just don't drink it.
'Sensible' is a curse word.
"...according to their specs sheet (PDF warning), this stuff has a boiling point of 49.2C (120.6F). Processors burn hotter than that, how useful would it still be for cooling purposes if it were a gas?"
If they're using it to put out fires, it's a safe bet that it can handle your Athlon.
Not if it doesn't conduct heat very well. A cloud of scalding hot carbon dioxide gas would put out a fire, too, but it wouldn't do much for cooling your processor.
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Except for the fact that after you remove the electronics, the Sapphire drips off and dries into the air (i.e. no rubbing required) whereas to get that mineral oil off you'd have to painstakingly open and isolate each part, and dab/wipe all that oil off. Not to mention that inert mineral oil would be absorbed into the fibers of a book or of a fabric, whereas Sapphire wont (which makes it ideal for fire suppression in libraries/clothing stores/repositories.
"Stumble before you crawl"
Not the same thing. You aren't trying to put out fires by cooling them, you're depriving them of oxygen. It could be that it's just as good at that application in gaseous state as when a liquid. In processor's, on the other hand, you want something to conduct away the heat from the processor. Gasses are usually bad heat absorbers.
I do like what was said below about using the state change to cool, pumping the gaseous Sapphire away and re-condensing it. It would be more complicated than just putting your computer in a fish tank full of the stuff and letting convection do the rest (circulate the liquid keeping the coolest of it at the bottom), though.
Kinda like the old "If nothing sticks to Teflon, how does Teflon stick to the pan?"
I expect that a draining system would be the best way...
I wouldn't want to breath this stuff any more than I want to inhale octane, or anything else.
--Mike--
In all honesty, who gives a crap about whether it can be used as a coolant? There are already existing non-conductive liquid coolants on the market. The problem is that they're $X000/gallon, which is something most people cannot afford to invest in a heat sink!
It's not only about whether it could be a coolant, but whether it'd be affordable for anyone for personal use.
Personally the idea of using a chemical as a coolant doesn't put me at ease... especially when its something that you invite into your personal environment....
Non-toxic fluorocarbons often generate nasty thermal decomposition products. Mustard gas is a bad example, what you would get is a lot more like phosgene. Burn enough refrigerant, or just teflon in an open flame, and you will die.
They coat kitchen utensils with teflon, and it releases a small amount of phosgene into your kitchen atmosphere every time you ruin a cooking pan. Not enough to kill you, but the effects of phosgene are cumulative. I suppose this feature of teflon complements other natural selection mechanizms against forgetful people.