Hi.
Say a 40 Watt-rated plain fluorescent tube.
Say it is faintly lit. What is your guess; would it take 1 Watt ? Half a Watt ? Less than that ?

----> http://www.richardbox.com/field.htm
---->{www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxzSZ78cM-4}
---->{www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdoxWfPDTso}

How would you store that energy in a battery ? Just an antenna to a diode (or bridge) into battery and ground rod to the other battery terminal ?

Antenna-----------------------------------------|>|-------(+)BAT(-)---------GND

Am not interested in legalese.

 

Doesn't take much to make a fluorescent tube glow, you can do it by holding the glass in your hand and bring it near to a HV source, (high impedance source for safety).
An old circus trick.
Max.

 

How much power takes to faintly light up a fluorescent tube ?

Qualitatively speaking, very little!

Not much point in attempting to 'harvest' the energy unless you live under a 'high-tension' 'shipping' line -- in which case good luck convincing the POCO that your apparatus captures only energy that would be lost otherwise...

Best Regards
HP

 

Doesn't take much to make a fluorescent tube glow, you can do it by holding the glass in your hand and bring it near to a HV source, (high impedance source for safety).
An old circus trick.
Max.

Indeed! I used that 'trick' to illuminate a 2 mile stretch of (320kV) 'right of way' across my property (via ca. 2400 discarded 96" tubes standing vertically on the ground beneath the 'phases') --- NSP demanded I remove them on the basis that their presence was tantamount to "in transit theft of service" and, hence, 'piracy' (of the Capt. Kidd 'variety') --- They were unsympathetic to the fact that the tubes were only loosely electrostatically coupled to their line and, hence, represented no 'above background' loss to their facilities...--- Anyway, to cut to the chase, I eventually capitulated on the basis that they could very likely afford craftier barristers than I --- Odd how readily they disclaim ownership of that stray field when same is accused of inciting neurological lesions!

Nostalgically
HP

 

and, hence, 'piracy' (of the Capt. Kidd 'variety') ---

Although the Jury is still out on that one.
At that time, the establishment of the Royal Navy was still in its infancy so there was often still a grey area if you were a Pirate or actually a Privateer.
It could change from month to month (or week to week) depending on the speed of dispatches.
(see History of the Caribbean, incl Spanish America)
Max.

But no fluorescents back then.

 

Although the Jury is still out on that one.
At that time, the establishment of the Royal Navy was still in its infancy so there was often still a grey area if you were a Pirate or actually a Privateer.
It could change from month to month (or week to week) depending on the speed of dispatches.
(see History of the Caribbean, incl Spanish America)
Max.

But no fluorescents back then.

Golly! --- Seems I'll need to find another archetype of a 'high seas pirate' ----'Twouldn't be necessary but for the (bizarre) metamorphosis to the word's 'contemporary' meaning of "one who makes unauthorized reproductions of intellectual property"

Thanks for the heads up!
HP

 

Although the Jury is still out on that one.
At that time, the establishment of the Royal Navy was still in its infancy so there was often still a grey area if you were a Pirate or actually a Privateer.
It could change from month to month (or week to week) depending on the speed of dispatches.
(see History of the Caribbean, incl Spanish America)
Max.

But no fluorescents back then.

Back then the concept of the "legality" of some actions all depended on the nation whose interests where at stake... (read: England vs Spain). I'd say that was history's first Cold War.

 

Back then the concept of the "legality" of some actions all depended on the nation whose interests where at stake... (read: England vs Spain). I'd say that was history's first Cold War.

I must say my knowledge of the Spanish/Mexico side of history was lacking, including significance of Cinco de Mayo, but on a visit some years ago I learned quite a bit from Mayan, Spanish and Britain/France involvement.
I particularly remember one historical report when at the time of the Spanish conquest, the Pope at the time issued a Papal Bull which drew a line down the east side of S.America. declaring that no nation other than Spain could cross it (read Gold)!.
Of course, the British,Dutch and French promptly ignored it.
Max.