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Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2017 9:41 pm
by Peter Schmelcher
Andrew

I am waiting for a quote from Claymount for both the part numbers you mentioned.

The web page product inquiry email address for North America is:
Philippines.Claymount.CS@vareximaging.com

Do you have a different contact address?

-Peter

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2017 9:57 pm
by Andrew Seltzman
My sale's contact was:
Karen Albright
email: Karen.Albright <at> varian.com

If you were being quoted through a different division, particularly an international one, they might quote a different price.
The 40 days lead time on the cable sounds correct, they quoted the same lead time to me.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2017 11:25 pm
by Peter Schmelcher
Thanks. Just sent an email with fingers crossed.
-Peter

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Sun Jan 22, 2017 2:58 pm
by Garrett Young
Andrew,

The price you were quoted was given as a "one-time, educational institution courtesy".

What contacts are you using in your replacement connector?

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Sun Jan 22, 2017 10:52 pm
by Trent Carter
I bought two of these units from the same eBay seller [ntc_tech]. The main difference was the fact they were listed as [For parts or not working] and it was true; both broken as expected..

I have both up and running and bench tested to 5k volts. I have been unable to get a response on the HV cable so I can't test them at full throttle.

Thanks to Cliff S. and his generous contribution in time and sharing partial schematics the repairs went like this.

Unit Serial Number 411: (showing 13.8 hrs)
Replaced Q11 and Q8 [IXFH26N50] Symptoms: showing shorts on all 3 pins.
Replaced Q10 [65F6110] Symptoms: showing shorts on all 3 pins.
Replaced C149 (working and tested OK, but slight bulldog in top, you know how sensitive CAPs are to heat and they will fail eventually)

Unit Serial Number 341:
Replaced Q6 and Q10 [IXFH26N50] Symptoms: showing shorts on all 3 pins.
Replaced C160 and C161 (preventative maintenance, they tested fine)

Time:
Learning schematics and finding physical PCB part locations: 1 hour
Tracking down faulty components with Fluke meter: 1hr on first unit, 30minutes on second due to learning the layout.
Desoldering and verifying parts were defective: 30minutes (20 of which was switching to leaded solder so i could actually get them desoldered)
Ordering components: 30min all Mouser
Replacing faulty components: 30min.
=========
Total: 3 hrs for 2 units, or 1.5hrs / unit.

Cost ~$57 for two units. I actually used one MOSFET from unit 341 in 411 that I switched out both so they would match, but then found the same component bad in the other unit that I missed at initial debug. Thus I had one extra part, and needed it.

Shopping List:
C160 and C161
Mouser #: 5985-450V150
Mfr. #: 381LX151M450K022
Desc.: Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitors - Snap In Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitors - Snap In 450V 150uF 30X30
2 $3.80 $7.60

C149
Mouser #: 667-EEU-EE2W560
Mfr. #: EEU-EE2W560
Desc.: Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitors - Leaded Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitors - Leaded 56uF 450volts AEC-Q200
2 $3.26 $6.52

QQ8 and Q11
Mouser #: 747-IXFH26N50P
Mfr. #: IXFH26N50P
Desc.: MOSFET MOSFET HiPERFET Id26 BVdass500
2 $5.91 $11.82

OEM Fuses - Ceramic + extras
Mouser #: 576-0314015.HXP
Mfr. #: 0314015.HXP
Desc.: Cartridge Fuses Cartridge Fuses 250V 15A Fast Acting
10 $0.744 $7.44

Q6 and Q10
Mouser #: 726-IPW65R110CFDA
Mfr. #: IPW65R110CFDA
Desc.: MOSFET MOSFET N-Ch 650V 31.2A TO247-3
2 $8.22 $16.44

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Sun Jan 22, 2017 11:16 pm
by Garrett Young
Trent,

Nice! What do you plan on doing with 2 supplies?

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2017 8:39 pm
by Trent Carter
I have 3x operational HV supplies
Bertan 30 kV @ 33mA (older analog Bertan 106 3040)
2x Spellman 70kV @ 8.56mA (DXM70Ns)
This will give me flexibility to have 70kV @ 17mA. I also want to do some testing of direct conversion even if just simulated but thats beyond the typical fusor applications. I also wanted to make sure I ended up with at least one working supply, so buying two increases my odds of success.

I really like the fact I can completely automate these supplies via ethernet, RS232, or USB. I realize a simple DAC will automate even the older analog supplies, but repeatability and remote-control are two features at the top of my wish list and these supplies are perfect for both.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Wed Jan 25, 2017 8:23 am
by Dennis P Brown
A word of caution on supply ratings; a power supply that has a 70 kV rating and has a max current of 8 or so milliamps does not generally mean it can supply both at the same time. You might want to check what the supply can do before counting on this type of performance. Critical is the power it can supply within the 25 - 45 kV range.

Also, using two supplies simultaneously is very difficult due to issues of impedance matching and ground loops. Be careful trying that with a fusor since resistance can jump all other the place and balancing load is, as a result, tricky.

Your 30 kV, 30 ma supply does appear to be a good unit for fusion (again, assuming it can handle close to that current in the 25+ kV range.)

I am curious to know what you mean by "direct conversion"?

Finally, your repair of those units is impressive and I am sure you will get good results once you start with your project.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2017 4:50 am
by Bob Reite
Putting two supplies in parallel can be tricky. However if they are both the same make and model and each has its own ballast resistor (to help balance the load evenly) it can be done. You might also consider putting a diode in series with the output of each, but they would need to be 80KV PIV diodes and you would have a roughly 150V drop across each diode.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2017 12:04 pm
by Trent Carter
Dennis:
Yes; 70kx @ 8ma spec != empirical. As Ronald Reagan used to say; Trust But Verify. They are what they are, and I am not trying to save the world, so if they under-perform, I will have to accept it as fact or buy new supplies.

As for direct conversion, I am referring to directly converting energy from a fusion device into electric potential. Not suited for D-D, but for p+-B11 (and others). It is really the holly grail since it has high theoretical conversion efficiency 60-88% (depending on financial tolerance) and removes the water-steam-condensation cycle which is inherently inefficient, large, and while not overly complex, not as "solid state" as direct conversion. Here is a decent 2 page read. http://www.askmar.com/Fusion_files/Dire ... actors.pdf

Bob:
Thanks for the 80KV PIV diode idea; unidirectional semiconductor isolation sounds like a good idea and for 150v penalty seems smart. And yes I have ordered matching ballast resistors as my initial order was one of each, not its two of the target units. I am using Surplus Sales of Nevada, great selection of ballast resistors and very reasonable pricing. I will test 40kohms - 100kohms ranging from 80-200watts, big guys. Right now for testing the 60-65kohm range at 120watts seems fine for my 30kv setup.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2017 3:15 am
by Peter Schmelcher
Purchasing a connector is not looking so good.

I was ready to buy the $160 part but then on Friday they had cold feet. I think it was because I was the end user and paid all taxes.

So don’t hold your breath and get ready to make your own HV cable termination.


BTW I measured the filament waveform (no load) thinking it might be useful as a floating power supply for a mass flow controller or something.

The waveform looks like the output of a pulse transformer. You get a positive +20V pulse then some time later a -20V pulse. A faster pulse rate is a higher filament current.

-Peter
DXM filament.JPG

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2017 12:32 pm
by Trent Carter
I was also thinking about the filament power supply. I would not use it for mass flow devices because they generally need 24vdc and those supplies are cheap and readily available.

However the filament supply is unique in the fact it is on the -70kV side of the supply, thus Spellman has performed the necessary steps to have a low voltage, high current supply that can operate at the -70kV potential. Thats non-trivial for most. So I was thinking of using the filament supply as intended; to drive a filament. Seems like a easy supply for the hot filament of an ion source. Assuming the ion source was implemented near or inside the cathode. I don't have any brilliant ideas on any such implementation at the moment, but have added it to my mental toolkit.

As for the cable; I just ordered one directly from Claymount (now Varex) for $170 +S&H+Tax. Yes, almost as much as the supply. I too got cold feet on ordering two, and grabbed some decent HV connectors and a nice cable from HVStuff to see if I have the skills to contain 70kV (likely not).

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2017 10:07 pm
by Garrett Young
Andrew,

I attempted a HV cable and it arcs at about 28kV to the power supply case. Any chance I could buy a single conductor 2.5 ft cable assembly from you?

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2017 12:43 am
by Andrew Seltzman
I don't have any complete cables for sale, but I do have a cable plug. You would have to pot in you own HV cable with an RTV silicone and buy the required pins. Send me an email at seltzman <at> wisc.edu

I might be willing to do a mass production run of cable plugs if there is interest.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2017 4:43 pm
by Trent Carter
I fabricated a physical controller for the Spellman supply, thought it would be a one day job, but took two. The main snags were;

1. The pin 11 - 12 that is labeled "X-Ray Enable" is the interlock (no big news there)
2. Pins 15 and 12 must also be connected but only after 11 and 12. So if you wire them to one switch as I did the power supply won't enable HV out.
The rest was straight forward.
Other notes;
3. If you want to get +10V from the Spellman to simplify your controller, you have to turn the tiny trim pots on the front of the supply all the way to the right, then you will have +10 V on pins 5 and 7

For real use I don't need this controller but for development and testing nothing beats a knob and switch. For automation reasons I will be using the rs232 and/or TCP for remote operation. During "Oh C4@p" moments I prefer not to have to fumble with a mouse and keyboard. I love slap-off switches and paddles as you can see. I had one 1.5kV supply go "fireworks" on me this week and I paddle-shutoffed the impending fire.

You can also see the controller I made for my 30kV Bertan Series 106 (smaller brown controller with one LCD) has been a good workhorse.

*A special thanks to Andrew and Dan Knapp for publishing every detail; it saved me a few hours I am sure.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Mon Feb 20, 2017 4:55 pm
by Richard Hull
It really helps when those of us who know electronics and computer interfacing can kludge stuff together to make dead things "go" again. Help from friends who have trodden the path saves us time as well. We share back what we have learned. This is what open source means in our unwritten constitution.

Richard Hull

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Wed May 03, 2017 10:59 pm
by Garrett Young
I purchased a known defective Spellman DXM70N600X3547 and the inverter board was completely gone (especially since someone previously attempted to fix the board). I designed a new inverter specifically for DXMXXX600 supplies with a user selectable switch frequency (20-80kHz). When you remove the user control interface and power factor correction front end the driver is really straight forward. I used a current transformer to limit the peak primary current in the flybacks on a cycle by cycle basis. The feedback loop reuses the monitor cable from the high voltage board and controls the PWM duty cycle based on output current. I power the circuit using a variac for easy control and limit the power to the flybacks/multiplier in order to protect them from thermal overload. I was easily able to achieve 500k n/sec on it's first run (35kV @ 8mA).
IMG_1597.JPG

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu May 04, 2017 4:31 pm
by Richard Hull
There is always a way to "skin th' cat". It just takes know-how and a will to do and accomplish. The hands-on-imperative.
Good work!

Richard Hull

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Sun Jun 18, 2017 11:49 am
by Rich Feldman
Nice work there, Garrett. Good reference in case my repaired DXM70N600 fails to work. So far, it's never failed because it's never been tried (since repair).

Sounds like some of us are in a club which enjoys the Frankenstein approach to re-animating old subsystems.
Long ago I acquired up a Kaiser HVPS rated for about 1200 V at 1 A for about $35.
Figured its inverter could be connected to a different transformer, such as one of several already on the shelf.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2017 1:44 am
by Nick Peskosky
It's been a while since I have been able to chime in on this thread but I was lucky enough to score one of these supplies while I was deployed most recently over in Japan. Cobbled together a breadboard analog controller over the weekend and was able to make this supply come to life (confirmed with a trusty Fluke 80K-40) tonight. I missed the notes on the trim pots at first and couldn't get an output on the HV side. Measured my 10kOhm pot and realized there wasn't a dc voltage on the rail so I just subbed in a bench DC supply at a regulated 0.8V to realize -5.00kV on the output. I'm working a few upgrades to my existing Fusor and simultaneously commencing work on a second 6-way cross that I hope to turn into a BoT system. This thread has been absolute life saver as far as reference materials go!

I'll provide an update once my crossover cable arrives from Amazon.
Spellman DXM70N600X_Test_06.28.2017.jpg

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Wed Jul 05, 2017 4:57 pm
by Joshua Guertler
What type of rectifier did you use to get the power to DC?

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.5

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 10:09 pm
by Trent Carter
I have two of these and I was considering running them in parallel to double the current from 8.5mA to 17mA.

I have a decent array of HVR-1X 3 Diodes. They are rated at 12kV 500mA each in an array of 16 per string. They were on PCBs to rectify 125kV.
IMG_4405.JPG
Here is what I was considering:

DXM-1 ---- 16x string of HVR-1X 3 ------|
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>|------330 kOhm @ 100W -------Fusor Cathode
DXM-2 ---- 16x string of HVR-1X 3 ------|

Or I can split the ballast

DXM-1 ---- 16x string of HVR-1X 3 ----126KOhm 100W Ballast--|
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>|---------Fusor Cathode
DXM-2 ---- 16x string of HVR-1X 3 ----126KOhm 100W Ballast--|

Last option, a series parallel ballast:

DXM-1 ---- 16x string of HVR-1X 3 ----63KOhm 100W Ballast--|
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>|---80kOhm 100W ballast------Fusor Cathode
DXM-2 ---- 16x string of HVR-1X 3 ----63KOhm 100W Ballast--|

Do you think I would be safe? Safe = Not damage my new DXMs.

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.56MA

Posted: Fri May 04, 2018 4:41 am
by Peter Schmelcher
Using Andrews connector autopsy as a starting point I printed a Claymount style HV connector in PLA.

It’s a work in progress but basically you cast silicone between a PLA shell and the HV cable to eliminate any air voids between the cable and the shell.

The HV connector plug has a 0.5degree taper so all the o rings engage together for the last 2cm of insertion. I only used ¾”ID x 15/16OD silicone o rings and varied the notch diameter for a good fit.

I printed with a 0.4mm diameter nozzle and 0.15mm layer thickness. The walls are 0.8mm thick (two nozzles diameters).

The STL files are about 16meg because of the printed 0.75mm pitch threads. I can't attach the .stl files to my post so PM if you want the stl files.

I fit tested the connector on both of my Spellman, one is perfect all the o rings engage together for the last 2cm of insertion requiring a pleasing amount of force, and the other is similar but requires excess force, in my opinion. I expect just some grease is needed on the o rings.

-Peter
HV connector.jpg
Picture 601.jpg
Picture 602.jpg
HV connector.png

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.56MA

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2018 3:16 am
by Samuel Low
Andrew Seltzman wrote: Wed Nov 23, 2016 8:42 pm I've compiled the matlab m files into a stand alone program that ramps the supply up to 10kV, it should start ramping up the voltage when executed.
DXM_test.zip
You will need the matlab runtime(free) on your computer to run the program
Get the Windows 64-bit version of the MATLAB Runtime for R2016a
https://www.mathworks.com/products/compiler/mcr/
Andrew thank you very much for this MATLAB code. As with all others, I've tried to run my Spellman DXM 30kV power supply but the Java Applet just isn't working. Your MATLAB code runs as it does, but somehow the queried voltage out is still showing me a flat zero... I am not sure why. I have not done anything else except to:

1. plug in the Ethernet crossover cables
2. verify that I can ping 192.168.1.4
3. verify that I can open the Java applet (but not use it, TCP/IP connection shows a blank and the buttons are non-responsive)
4. proceeded to run your MATLAB code, changing all options in your code from remote to local (because I am doing a direct connection between my laptop and the spellman unit).

I've attached the plot. I don't really understand why it doesn't work, the code seems to be working properly and I am successfully querying information such as the server versions and things like that.

Also, has anyone been able to get the Java applet to work on Windows 7? Seems the manual says it works only for Windows-based OS's up till XP.

Anyway, if anyone wants to get their hands on a CA11 cable that connects from a Spellman HV unit, the cheapest I have found so far is about 300USD (inclusive of shipping), from a company called Varex Imaging in the Phillipines. https://www.vareximaging.com/products/c ... connectors

The contact person in charge of cable sales, email: alina.latayan@vareximaging.com

Re: Spellman DXM70N600X3547 power supplies on ebay -70kV 8.56MA

Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2018 9:08 am
by Andrew Seltzman
I don't see an attached plot, could you upload the plot and the text output printed to the matlab terminal?

It sounds like one of the interlocks is tripped, do you have the proper pins jumpered on the 15pin connector?

The java applet is really old and dosen't work on current OS.