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velocity induced chemical luminescence

Oxygen activates glow in the dark chemical through semi-permeable membrane, dependent on speed
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I thought the least messy way would be to have the chemicals embedded in some kind of gel, then the gel is wrapped in a membrane which lets oxygen in. A clear layer of some kind of plastic with lots of small holes could be overlayed to protect the gel. This gel would have a solid adhesive membrane on the back side, and could be designed to be wrapped around the frame of a bicycle, or a scooter. The other possibility would be bioluminescence, but it might be hard to keep bacteria alive to glow, though you might be able to do it if you could circulate nutrients and luciferace substrate through the gel when not in use. The faster you go, the more oxygen the gel receives, the faster the reaction goes, the brighter you glow!
jawajames, Dec 12 2000

impact phosphorescence http://www.halfbake...t_20Phosphorescence
[egnor, Dec 12 2000, last modified Oct 04 2004]

pressure sensitive paint http://www.lerc.nas...W/OptInstr/psp.html
[egnor, Dec 12 2000, last modified Oct 04 2004]

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       Interesting thinking. But I think that only surfaces facing the "wind" would glow. Surfaces parallel with the direction of travel and surfaces on the back side of the object would experience _reduced_ oxygen pressure, so they would not glow any more than they would at rest. This consideration would be particularly important for an object with a low aerodynamic profile, like a bike.
beauxeault, Dec 12 2000
  

       To solve the problem proposed by Beauxeault, let the membrane around the active compound take the form of an airflow blocker, but leave a thin layer of "dead air" around the active compound. Air would be relatively free to move around in this thin layer, but has a barrier to go in or out. The O2 in the dead airspace will quickly be consumed at rest, and the reaction rate will be dependant on the rate at which the air in the dead space is replaced by new air--occuring only at high speeds.
badoingdoing, Dec 13 2000
  

       Ahhhh...the joys of riding around with glowing embers on your bike. Makes me long for simpler times.
dgeiser13, Apr 13 2001
  

       So let me get this straight, you want to put something on your bike that would need nutrients? That means you would have to feed it, right? Great, just what I need, a pet bike. Or do you mean gas it up. Thats kinda like having a motorcycle isn't it?
barnzenen, Jun 06 2002
  
      
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