Impulse Deflection Crystals and Warp Core

[Rick Sternbach]

Thanks for your thoughts, this is an issue that has bugged me for years!
I think the big question about the VOY Warp Core is that unlike its TNG and TMP predecessor there are no obvious plasma conduits in the main engine room.

If the VOY core is like the TNG one (matter coming in from the top and antimatter from the bottom) then there needs to be one or more exit points (probably at the centre) to carry the plasma to the nacelles. I suppose the exit tube could be in the deck below the engine room (possible under that line of glowy floor panels) but then there's also the issue of accessing the dilithium crystals: something even engineers on the E-D needed to do from time to time. So, surely the logical place to house this access hatch would be in "main" engineering, wouldn't it?

As I said, lots of thoughts!

Heh. The lack of obvious PTCs on set was due to the way the set was designed. I have no problem with it, and yeah, the PTCs were imagined to come off the core one deck down. When Voyager ejected its primary core, I believe I designed the connectors into the sketch for the CG guys. As for the dilithium crystals in Voyager's core, they're coating the entire inner wall of the big tube, so there's no distinct crystal assembly like on the Ent-D. The Voyager tube is an improved version of Starfleet's swirl chamber M/ARC.

 

[Mytran]

Heh. The lack of obvious PTCs on set was due to the way the set was designed. I have no problem with it, and yeah, the PTCs were imagined to come off the core one deck down. When Voyager ejected its primary core, I believe I designed the connectors into the sketch for the CG guys. As for the dilithium crystals in Voyager's core, they're coating the entire inner wall of the big tube, so there's no distinct crystal assembly like on the Ent-D. The Voyager tube is an improved version of Starfleet's swirl chamber M/ARC.

Ah, I have heard that line about the VOY core section being lined with dilithium before, and it seems a good progression of the technology (especially in a ship that also featured other experimental tech).

However, if the reaction chamber is above the plasma conduits, does that mean that the antimatter has to come up past the PTCs into the dilithium chamber before the plasma gets pumped back down again? Seems a long winded route, although I seem to recall the warp core having a lot of little tubes just below the reaction chamber, is this what they were for?

Or, is both the matter and antimatter stored (and injected) from above? (kind of an upside down TMP model).

Or am I missing a rather obvious third option?

 

[Rick Sternbach]

Ah, I have heard that line about the VOY core section being lined with dilithium before, and it seems a good progression of the technology (especially in a ship that also featured other experimental tech).

However, if the reaction chamber is above the plasma conduits, does that mean that the antimatter has to come up past the PTCs into the dilithium chamber before the plasma gets pumped back down again? Seems a long winded route, although I seem to recall the warp core having a lot of little tubes just below the reaction chamber, is this what they were for?

Or, is both the matter and antimatter stored (and injected) from above? (kind of an upside down TMP model).

Or am I missing a rather obvious third option?

In Voyager, like with the Ent-D, the matter (deuterium) is injected in a thin stream from above, the antideuterium comes up from below, and they react *generally* around the middle of the tube. The dilithium lining of the tube evens out the frequencies of the plasma reaction. The plasma actually fills the PTCs all the way to the nacelles, and the energy and pressure are maintained from the idle setting all the way up to whatever power is required for high warp. Not sure what you mean about lots of little tubes. Anyhow, think of the PTCs and the hot plasma simply as fat hollow extension cords sending juice to the nacelles. Nothing really "flows" except for the energy from the M/ARA to the nacelle coils. The only time any of the pressurized stuff flows is when there's an emergency plasma flush. And that almost never happens because the system conveniently goes offline during a crisis. - Rick

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Impulse deflection crystals do whatever the plot demands they do.

 

[Mytran]

In Voyager, like with the Ent-D, the matter (deuterium) is injected in a thin stream from above, the antideuterium comes up from below, and they react *generally* around the middle of the tube. The dilithium lining of the tube evens out the frequencies of the plasma reaction. The plasma actually fills the PTCs all the way to the nacelles, and the energy and pressure are maintained from the idle setting all the way up to whatever power is required for high warp. Not sure what you mean about lots of little tubes. Anyhow, think of the PTCs and the hot plasma simply as fat hollow extension cords sending juice to the nacelles. Nothing really "flows" except for the energy from the M/ARA to the nacelle coils. The only time any of the pressurized stuff flows is when there's an emergency plasma flush. And that almost never happens because the system conveniently goes offline during a crisis. - Rick

The little tubes I mentioned are on the outside of the vertical Warp core, just above floor level:

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/b5/08/c9/b508c914992e1acb0e9e49e36261f60e.jpg

However, from your description of Voyager's dilithium lined Warp Core I was clearly thinking along the wrong lines altogether!
You are saying that the entire vertical tube is a huge reaction chamber, with matter and antimatter annihilating each other wherever they happen to meet and the resultant energy leaving this terrifying pressure-cooker like environment via the (unseen) horizontal PTCs

It's quite a different setup from the one on the Enterprise-D
https://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/images/e/ed/Crystal.jpg
...where the reaction only happens in a very small portion of the vertical warp core tube, but it sounds much more exciting!

 

[Tallguy]

Impulse deflection crystals do whatever the plot demands they do.

And they blow up real good.

 

[Rick Sternbach]

The little tubes I mentioned are on the outside of the vertical Warp core, just above floor level:

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/b5/08/c9/b508c914992e1acb0e9e49e36261f60e.jpg

However, from your description of Voyager's dilithium lined Warp Core I was clearly thinking along the wrong lines altogether!
You are saying that the entire vertical tube is a huge reaction chamber, with matter and antimatter annihilating each other wherever they happen to meet and the resultant energy leaving this terrifying pressure-cooker like environment via the (unseen) horizontal PTCs

It's quite a different setup from the one on the Enterprise-D
https://wiki.starbase118.net/wiki/images/e/ed/Crystal.jpg
...where the reaction only happens in a very small portion of the vertical warp core tube, but it sounds much more exciting!

I don't know exactly what the little tubes are, but I could probably make a case for them being magnetic constriction devices. The Ent-D vertical core can be thought of as two enormous magnetic pistons squeezing from top and bottom, and the matter and antimatter shooting though those fields, to hold the reaction together in the big gray chamber. With Voyager, being a less massive vessel, the vertical tube still makes lots of power, just in a different way. - R

 

[Mytran]

I don't know exactly what the little tubes are, but I could probably make a case for them being magnetic constriction devices. The Ent-D vertical core can be thought of as two enormous magnetic pistons squeezing from top and bottom, and the matter and antimatter shooting though those fields, to hold the reaction together in the big gray chamber. With Voyager, being a less massive vessel, the vertical tube still makes lots of power, just in a different way. - R

I'd just like to say thanks for sticking with this thread through my continual queries on this matter. As I initially mentioned, the Voyager Warp Core has been an area of continual speculation for me over the years but it's clear I was too stuck on the classic TNG model!

One final query though, if I may? In Skin Of Evil we saw the central dilithium crystal being removed for maintenance. Do you imagine anything similar ever happening in the Voyager Engine Room? And if so, how would they easily access the dilithium inside the tube?

 

[Rick Sternbach]

I'd just like to say thanks for sticking with this thread through my continual queries on this matter. As I initially mentioned, the Voyager Warp Core has been an area of continual speculation for me over the years but it's clear I was too stuck on the classic TNG model!

One final query though, if I may? In Skin Of Evil we saw the central dilithium crystal being removed for maintenance. Do you imagine anything similar ever happening in the Voyager Engine Room? And if so, how would they easily access the dilithium inside the tube?

Voyager wouldn't have the engineering assets on board to do anything like a complete recoating of the tube, though I'm sure there are small gizmos that can travel up and down the interior during maintenance downtimes and perform minor polishing and divot filling. There's also the replacement core that can be refurbed and slotted into place if need be. Not plug 'n' play, exactly, but there are enough duplicate core parts that can be installed. Takes about a week. Think of the Ent-D core like a desktop tower computer with fixable swappable stuff, and Voyager's core like an iMac that's all glued together.

Rick

 

[Mytran]

Voyager wouldn't have the engineering assets on board to do anything like a complete recoating of the tube, though I'm sure there are small gizmos that can travel up and down the interior during maintenance downtimes and perform minor polishing and divot filling. There's also the replacement core that can be refurbed and slotted into place if need be. Not plug 'n' play, exactly, but there are enough duplicate core parts that can be installed. Takes about a week. Think of the Ent-D core like a desktop tower computer with fixable swappable stuff, and Voyager's core like an iMac that's all glued together.

Great, now I am picturing the E-D and Voyager on one of those "I am an Mac; I am a PC" adverts! They've got little puppet mouths and everything!

Anyway, with regard to recoating the dilithium chamber there was possibly some process associated with it, as we witnessed during Lt Torres' chewing out of Hogan in the episode Alliances:

HOGAN: Or do you agree with our Captain that holding on to our technology is worth dying for.
TORRES: Who are you to be second guessing Captain Janeway? The hardest thing you have to think worry is keeping that dilithium chamber filled.

Now granted she doesn't say exactly what he's filling up the dilithium chamber with (maybe antimatter, maybe hot plasma, maybe E/M radiation), but it could suggest a replenishment of the crystals.

 

[Rick Sternbach]

Great, now I am picturing the E-D and Voyager on one of those "I am an Mac; I am a PC" adverts! They've got little puppet mouths and everything!

Anyway, with regard to recoating the dilithium chamber there was possibly some process associated with it, as we witnessed during Lt Torres' chewing out of Hogan in the episode Alliances:



Now granted she doesn't say exactly what he's filling up the dilithium chamber with (maybe antimatter, maybe hot plasma, maybe E/M radiation), but it could suggest a replenishment of the crystals.

Hey, stop confusing me with stuff the writers wrote. I'll have to go back to the tech notes and see if we commented on it. Yeah, it could be related to whatever gizmo keeps the coating clean and fresh. - R

 

[Lakenheath 72]

Based on ST II, the "blue dome" had something to do with the warp drive. After it was hit, Joachim informs Khan that the warp drive is damaged.

 

[Jerikka Dawn]

Based on ST II, the "blue dome" had something to do with the warp drive. After it was hit, Joachim informs Khan that the warp drive is damaged.

Or the "Photon Controls" It's possible that this blue crystal dome thing is the part of the ship that feeds power to the detonators behind all the consoles that cause all the panel explosions we witness all the time.

 

[soornge]

i like to thonknof the dome as a mood rock