Abstract and subjects
In a tube many wavelengths long, thermoacoustic separation of a gas mixture can produce very high purities. A flexible wall allows a spatially continuous supply of acoustic power into such a long tube. Coiling the tube and immersing it in a fluid lets a single-wavelength, circulating, traveling pressure wave in the fluid drive all the wavelengths in the tube wall and gas. Preliminary measurements confirm many aspects of the concept with neon (Ne-20 and Ne-22) and highlight some challenges of practical implementation. (C) 2014 Acoustical Society of America.