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Post by Shala'Bekk vas Neema on Feb 12, 2014 7:15:47 GMT -6
I don't know if anyone is going to refer to Shala's combat drone and sentry turrets, but just in case they do, she modified them to carry flamethrowers instead of rocket launchers, given Esteban's desire to keep the ruins intact.
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Post by dargene on Feb 12, 2014 8:14:04 GMT -6
Drones would be almost useless outside since no atmosphere for the fire to burn :/
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Post by Maelstrom on Feb 12, 2014 12:00:08 GMT -6
I could be mistaken, since my science background is more in biology than physics, but even in absence of some liquid capable of burning in absence of oxygen, a flamethrower could still operate in vacuum by expelling at high velocity a foam comprised of a flammable liquid or colloid surrounding oxygen bubbles. This, of course, assuming that Shala would not prefer using plasma projector that does not focus the excited matter into a tight beam, which would (if I understand correctly) exhibit (even visually) properties similar to a flamethrower however better retain its potency in vacuum due to having no need to consume oxygen. I believe the tech in the Mass Effect universe is sufficiently advanced to allow either option. Again, correct me if I've gotten my science wrong.
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Post by Iregos on Feb 13, 2014 13:32:58 GMT -6
So the way fire would work in space is a bit on the science fiction side of things. But that's ok, right? www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zdD7lfB0FsThat covers what happens, not so much in space, but without gravity. That is still something that is being studied, and is not fully understood yet. In zero gravity, or rather micro-gravity, the flames themselves seem to orbit the combustion source, and they burn very low, a sort of "smoulder". If oxygen gas is dispersed with the fire, the fire may be affected by the movement of that gas in a similar way. In short, a simple spontaneous fire in space could be suffocated by decompression, but a directed blast from a flamethrower would still have the appropriate fuel, if the formula for the fuel is right. The flame would be controlled by lack of external oxygen, but it could still work provided some supply of oxygen. In line with Mass Effect lore, a turret might compress a substance until it bursts out at a very high speed, very hot, fueled by some sort of oxidizing agent. The fire would not be as bright, more contained to the objects that were struck with the flaming liquid, which would require that oxidizing agent. If the liquid became vapor, it might even set off chain reactions, following the heat and combustible material outward from the source. I'll stop there, because I'm not trained in thermodynamics.
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