In article <1208198657@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>, throopw@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
(Wayne Throop)
wrote:
> ::: A pressure cooker is the first thing that comes to mind.
> ::: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pressure_cookersays
most standard
> ::: pressure cookers sold in the US can hold a one-atmosphere difference
> ::: and there's probably a goodly safety margin there.
>
> Would the gaskets on a standard pressure cooker last long under lunar
> conditions? They might, but I wouldn't be confident.
The old natural rubber ones wouldn't, but these days they're usually
either silicone rubber or neoprene. As long as they don't see huge
temperature swings (lunar) daily, they should last quite a while.
> The pressure
> cookers of my distant yoot had valves that regulated pressure based on
> weight of a little metal widget that fit over a vent; is that still that
> case?
Pretty much, although there's some variation on how it's implemented.
The rocking weight is still around, but a lot of cookers use other sorts
of weights or spring-loaded valves.
> If so, lunar gravity would cause problems for an unmodified cooker.
Since you're probably not going to be cooking whatever you've got
stashed in the cooker, it's likely you'd just plug the vent and be done
with it.
> And therefore you'd probably have to be careful to plug up the vent
> in such a way that the plug would well withstand lunar conditions, and
> also not leak (ie, ou couldn't just crimp it shut... braizing or welding
> might work, but then there's less reason to start with a pressure
cooker).
The valves tend to be replaceable, screwed in, so unscrewing the vent
and replacing it with a machine screw of the right pitch/diameter should
be fine.
> Oh, and of course, pressure cookers with gasket and vent aren't really
> designed to prevent long-term slow leakage. Indeed, the vent as I
recall
> it wasn't really totally air/steam-proof; just slowed down losses enough
> to raise the pressure.
Solved by a machine screw.
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