So, a while back, I was looking to "roll my own" 1.8KW PS and I did the noob mistake by trying to do it using basically a linear regulator.
here is the original thread:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/projects/1800w-50v-power-supply/It basically was for a 1800W ZVS Induction Heater. I had changed the design of the regulator to a switching regulator, but never actually made it because I got lazy and I decided to just buy a 2.5KW PS that has all the little dodads that make it work right. That 1.8KW ZVS induction heater runs like a champ with 50V and 50A, not one problem, (knock on wood), ever.
(edit: the 1.8kW ZVS Induction heater was slightly modified with 10 AWG solid copper wire soldered directly into the pcb because the connector was 30A max, the pcb's traces from the irfp260's sources and drains to the tank caps and output posts were all beefed up with 14 AWG copper wire and alot of extra solder, also, a 48V fan died, so I got 12V fans with greater cfm, and the gate resistance dividers were all dropped down in increase efficiency. The gate voltages and the fans are now driven by a separate 13.8V PS ensuring that the gates are always supplied with enough voltage. Lastly I've got a switch that turns on the gate voltage, but also switches to ground when turned off, ensuring the circuit turns off. whew, that was alot)
Since then, it's been easy to melt about 18.8 inch^3 worth of aluminum in a 2 inch diameter crucible. When the buckets are full of water for cooling, it's just 5 switches to flip on and 10 mins later, I've got a crucible full of molten aluminum.
I have a 6 inch diameter crucible but I still need to make the coil and modify it for transport and pouring. Kinda hesitant about doing it though because the danger level is exponentially increased when the volume is that much.
anyways, the whole point was so that I could start making castings from 3d printed wax filament, but found that the toaster oven wont melt it out. A self cleaning oven probably would do the trick, but using the one I eat out of is dumb, and getting another one is too expensive and requires a lot of room.
So I've wanted to do Lost Foam Casting with expandable polystyrene using PETG filament 3d printed negative molds.
This process would be far more efficient for 3d printing and much faster setup times because it only requires the foam to be put into sand, without the plaster surrounding it. The plaster is only needed if you need a complex object.
The problem is, I can't find it anywhere for consumer use anywhere.
I found something called poly-fil micro beads, and tried them out, then found that they did not expand at all, (even though they say not to wash them)
now after more research, I've found that the pentane is actual put inside the beads while being made. Therefore any bead wont work unless it already has this pentane in it.
Anyone have any knowledge or experience in this?
I was thinking about getting some pentane liquid and submersing the micro beads in it to see if they would take on the "blowing agent" pentane.
Doubtful that it will work, but there just seems like there must be an easier way of casting foam for casting aluminum.
Here is a sample video of what I'm talking about: