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Lifters - Home for the highest performance lifter cells

'My lifter collection' page contains a series of experimental lifters or propulsion devices that do not use conventional methods for thrust. These lifters are using the Biefeld-Brown Effect to generate the main thrust to self levitate and are able to lift their own weight and even additional load. They are "modern versions" of the Townsend Brown Electrokinetic Apparatus, which was patented several years ago and regretably left unoticed at the patent office. A Basic Lifter cell is composed of three Townsend Brown assymetrical capacitors joined so as to form a triangular unit cell assembly. A triangular structure is far from the optimum shape but due to its simplicity it gives everyone the chance of trying out for himself the potential of this effect. Our aim is to find the best design & materials to construct the most powerful unit cell in the smallest possible space. Please note that these devices use very high voltages (>30KV) and experience in handling high voltage is a must. We are not responsible if you get killed!

Hints for a good lifter:

Description	Improvement factor	Related link(s)
Use lightweight foil - cheapest kitchen foil	Payload=Thrust-foil weight	No related link
Experiment with best foil depth, you should find an optimum depth for each particular lifter	Payload=Thrust-extra foil depth weight	EMK Analyser
Round edges on top and lower foil edges	Required!	JLN Lifter page
Eliminate corners in structure - use straight element panels instead of triangular structure	Less corners=less field distortion	Sealed lifter
Insulate any plasma glow foil edges with hot glue or araldite	The less glow the better	No related link
Use fine bare wire for corona wire	+?%	No related link
Use stainless steel wire for corona wire	+?%	Tim Ventura lifters
Electrically heat top wire example ex Tungsten/Nichrome	+10%	Heated cathode lifter
Stack vertically xn for improved performance	+100n%	Stacked lifters
Apply Bernouilli's effect to lifter	+50%	JLN Lifter craft
Use as high voltage as possible	+V%	Evgenij's maths
Dry out balsa supports in humid conditions. Hair dryers work fine	+%	No related link
Light coat of Teflon on lower foil	+10%	Sealed lifter
Use hollow carbon fibre rods for bigger lifters	+%	Related link
Use AC frequency to resonate at the RC value of your power supply/lifter combination	+%	JLN pulsed 70Hz lifter
Minimise ion impact area (horizontal face area of foil)	+100%	Horizontal plane foil lifter
Isolate corona wire from balsa to minimise leakage in balsa	+50%	Use small glass tubes
Modify air pressure within lifter	+n x 100% n=pressure ratio	Modified pressure lifter

Note balsa is highly flammable, and sparks may trigger balls of fire reducing your lifter to ashes!

Photo showing difference between corona set around a +70kV wire (left) and a -70kV wire (right), with respect to ground zero potential.