09-06-2017, 07:48 AM | #11 |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
Though asteroids are quite rich sources of raw materials. If you're on a metallic asteroid, volatiles might be an issue, while on a volatile asteroid, metals might be an issue, but you shouldn't need to import materials from a great distance.
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09-06-2017, 07:08 PM | #12 | |
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
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We've had transmutation in the real world since the 30s, for lab scale, and since the 40s for industrial scale (Tritium (H3) from Lithium, Plutonium from Uranium, and Americium from Uranium being the common items). But the cost can be a bit high (current market is $5M+ for a kg of Pu-238 from Np-237). True. |
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09-06-2017, 07:32 PM | #13 |
Wielder of Smart Pants
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Ventura CA
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
Tramutation of transuranics is a little different than making say stable iron from hydrogen.
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09-07-2017, 03:13 AM | #14 | |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: U.K.
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
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Yep. "Transmutation" for the specific purpose of nuclear fuel production was, I thought, pretty obviously not what I was talking about.
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09-07-2017, 04:08 AM | #15 |
Join Date: Jun 2006
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
Not that any reasonable sort of 3D printers or even drexlerian nanoassemblers can do that either.
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09-07-2017, 04:39 AM | #16 | |||||
GURPS FAQ Keeper
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Kyïv, Ukraine
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
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09-07-2017, 10:56 AM | #17 | |
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Berkeley, CA
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
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As far as electronics go, I assume that 3D printers are not capable of producing electronics directly -- rather, feedstock includes microelectronics that can be combined to form larger systems (this implies that THS electronics are massively parallel systems -- the electronics in feedstock are the equivalent of programmable neurons. Given the rest of THS technology, this is fairly believable). Last edited by Anthony; 09-07-2017 at 11:01 AM. |
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09-07-2017, 11:31 AM | #18 | |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
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09-07-2017, 11:50 AM | #19 | |
Join Date: May 2010
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
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There are a couple holes in this, though. One is the possibility of, say, the TSA engaging in rapid "catch-up growth" to Fifth Wave status, which would greatly upset the balance of power in the setting. An interesting possibility is to stipulate that this will happen, but at a fraction of the rate it could, because most minifacturing capacity is being use for military purposes and other short-term needs. Indonesia is promising a minifac in every village by 2015, perhaps if they threw the whole weight of their industrial capacity behind the plan they could do it in just a few years. The other hole is what radical transhumanist enclaves do. There, I'm honestly stumped, though maybe if I studied relevant sourcebooks more carefully there would be an answer. The Axon Group's budding base on Triton might suffer from having 0 minifacs to start out with. Not sure about the habitats in lunar orbit. |
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09-07-2017, 11:50 AM | #20 |
Untagged
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Forest Grove, Beaverton, Oregon
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Re: How hard is it to acquire raw materials for 3D printing?
I'm fine with large expensive industrial sized 3D printers competing with more classic factories. But those are a different beast from personal or small scale single building floor models.
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