[Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

Hey guys,

Just a quick question:

The Antimatter Plasma Torch [Spaceships 1, pp.23], normally powered by Antimatter-Boosted Hydrogen, has the option to 'replace hydrogen with water (3x Thrust, 1/3 Delta-V)'.

Does this mean it can run on 'pure' water, or does it require antimatter-boosted water?

I'm trying to build a smuggler/free-trader ship as cheaply as possible for a TL10 (limited super-science) setting.

The other option, of course, is the Fusion Torch which would be more expensive to buy but cheaper to fuel (with water).

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

Antimatter-boosted water.

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

Dang. That's going to hit my group in the hip pocket quite a bit.

Still, thanks for the speedy answer there;)

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

How did you determine that?

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

The antimatter is the enrgy source for the Antimatter Plasma Reaction Engine. No Antimatter, no go.

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

Alternately, when it says 'replace hydrogen with water', that means you replace the word 'hydrogen'. It doesn't say "replace antimatter-boosted hydrogen with water", it says "replace hydrogen with water" (I actually went Fred Brackin's logic, but it also follows from strictly interpreting the words).

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

What? If the antimatter plasma torch did not need antimatter with water it wouldn't need antimatter with hydrogen either.

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

Ah, so it's an assumption. Okay.

Does that book explain what 'anti-matter boosting' consists of?

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

No, it's a reasonable reading of the rules.

Yes. "Anti-matter boosting" (and "Anti-Matter Catalyzing") consists of mixing small amounts of Anti-Matter with Matter and ejecting the resulting plasma as reaction mass. The engine uses Anti-Matter to heat the reaction mass, and Hydrogen as reaction mass. If you have no Anti-Matter you have no heat, so you "no go." The Hydrogen is simply the reaction mass that is ejected, and can be replaced with other reaction mass giving the appropriate acceleration and deltaV modifications.

Re: [Spaceships] Antimatter Plasma Torch fuelled by Water?
 

At what point are the small amounts of anti-matter mixed in? -- at a refinery or aboard the vessel?

P.S. Can you give me a page cite for that info?