where fuel impurities go

[GrayPennell]

So I have moved on to designing my lego scout ship staterooms and of course saw there is little room for storage. The easiest way to solve this problem is everything are made on demand via 3d printer tech. But where do you get/store all material?

Than I though about the fuel purification system That's tons raw atoms to use. yes no?

 

[GypsyComet]

That really depends on where you got the unrefined fuel and thus what those impurities are. There will even be differences in the "same" sources. Dipping Jupiter will get a different gas mix ratio than dipping Saturn, for example.

Jupiter is mostly hydrogen and helium, followed by traces of carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, and silicon, then even less phosphorus, sulfur, and neon. Between the casual cryogenic control Traveller ships have over fuel stocks and the additional tools available with a dedicated fuel purification system, some of the impurities can be filtered so quickly they get vented while the ship is still skimming. Others can be diverted to life support stores, high tech flasks sitting in Engineering Locker 11, or monetized containers sitting in cargo.

 

[Maksim-Smelchak]

So I have moved on to designing my lego scout ship staterooms and of course saw there is little room for storage. The easiest way to solve this problem is everything are made on demand via 3d printer tech. But where do you get/store all material?

...where ever the heck you can?

Seriously, we really know very little about Makertech or how it works.

Marc's novel sends crews out to the asteroid belts to gather materials for things being maker-tech'ed. They were making bombardment weapons to waste a planet into a dusty, lifeless rock.

http://wiki.travellerrpg.com/Agent_of_the_Imperium

I would assume (...dangerous word) that they stored the raw materials in the cargo hold before using them, probably from FeNi rocks.

Than I though about the fuel purification system That's tons raw atoms to use. yes no?

Not all atoms are created equally as raw materials.

Additionally, we have no idea what the efficiency of the Makertech machine is... In science fiction, they are also known as replicators, molecular assembler, or santa clause machines among other names, and my guess is that Traveller's Makertech is on the lower tech end of that hypothetical spectrum. In other words, they are enormously less efficient than the replicators of Star Trek. But, who knows?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Claus_machine

I would guesstimate that Trav's Makertech is around 50% efficient meaning half the material is lost when the alchemy occurs... By TL:19-21, it's probably close to 100% efficient (...that would groove with the Mongoose take on the Ancients). At TL:13-15, material would be lost making inefficient on a mass industry scale for all but the most highly demanded items. And perhaps, the material ins't "lost," but simply turned into common and undesirable byproducts.

Again, who knows?

Gregory P. Lee's still unpublished novel treated makertech and nanotech like unobtainium like magic pixie dust, essentially filling in whatever sci-fi gimmickry he needed within his story. Real short on explanation, and long on the "reverse the polarity" school from Star Trek.

This Makertech article is largely fan conjecture (...since there is little else):

http://wiki.travellerrpg.com/Makertech

Hope it might be of use to you.

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

 

[gchuck]

Fuel Impurities

Than I though about the fuel purification system That's tons raw atoms to use. yes no?

From a GG, I'm not seeing it. Several dozen kilograms maybe. Easily storable onboard.

From a planetoid belt, or an ocean, okay. Plus a much better chance at getting some of the more esoteric elements you might need for your 'cake mix'.

After all, we're talking about a Keurig that makes 'parts', right? Drop in your 'K-cup' with the right mix of elements, and out pops a widget.

 

[kilemall]

I guess you could say that nuclear dampers eventually means transmutation on demand if you have enough power and time, but I would be awfully careful about making a maker that can use any raw material to make anything.


We went over maker rules, my take was that makers would be specialized for certain tasks and require specific 'feedstocks' of whatever material to make it's specialty. The more generic it is the bigger and more costly and more feedstocks you should have to carry.


Volume of items you are making would have a direct correlation on how big the maker has to be.



Given that the smaller ACS don't have space carved out for them, I would assume two makers standard. One in the Ship's Locker that makes critical survival and medical gear, and one in engineering. Since we are talking less then a ton, maybe 1-2 cubic meters each, they would only make small parts, not entire vacc suits or drive components.


Also keep in mind that the more Swiss Army knife you make those things, the less reason there is to be shipping anything but raw rare feedstock. Maybe allow a maker that can make an air/raft, but the total cost in invested maker, feedstock and time far outweighs just buying one that was made by a specialized mass-production maker facility.