Perpetual Motion in a frictionless environment...?

Question

If one were able to remove all friction, save for gravity, needed for the design i have in mind, could the machine work?

If friction is removed entirely, why couldn't it work?

Dr Fludd's perpetual motion waterwheel could be adapted to run without friction using magnets, in a vaccum.

Answer 1

The largest problem with perpetual motion machines is not so much the perpetual motion part, and more the machine part. A machine is designed to do work, either electrical, mechanical, or otherwise. In doing work, energy is lost, since work is measured in energy. Since energy is lost, the machine will eventually die unless provided with additional energy, but this ruins the idea of perpetual motion, since it isn't perpetual, but rather additional.

So, let's pretend you completely isolate your object from all stars, from all planets, from all dust, from all friction, from all gravity, from everything (not possible, but let's pretend). If you were able to shoot something in space, it would move perpetually, since nothing is stopping it. However, you wouldn't be able to get perpetual WORK out of this object, since it has a finite amount of energy. THIS is the primary factor in eliminating the idea of perpetual motion machines. The fact that you can't completely isolate your object is also important, but the major point of thermodynamics is the conservation of energy. Perpetual motion machines disobey this law.

Answer 2

Theoretically, depending on the machine, you could have a machine that does not stop after your initial energy. For instance a pendulum, the only thing that stops that is friction on the hinge, so if there was no friction it would keep swinging back and forth. However, if there was no friction on the hinge, there is nothing to prevent it from slipping off either.

That's the underlying principle behind why perpetual motion machines will never exist... there is no such thing as a frictionless environment. You can get pretty close, but you will not be able to have a frictionless object.

Also, gravity isn't friction... It helps cause friction though, by putting a force on an object so the object becomes "interlocked" with another.

Answer 3

Perpetual motion requires a machine with no friction,when you put it into motion it will keep going.
Any friction or Resistance will slow and stop it,even in a vacuum.
Many people still work on these devices,I did 60 years ago and concluded that it can't be done with no external input.
There is a natural force that could be exploited to keep a machine in perpetual motion.
I saw a documentary recently where the force was being used unknown to the designer.
He had to be Innocent of what he was showing or he wouldn't have let a camera crew in to film the device.He kept it locked in a safe and knew it would still be turning next month or next year.
His machine would slow down and stop if it was placed at the equator or either of the poles.can you fathom where the input force came from?

Answer 4

Well, gravity is not a form of friction, but I get your point.

If you could remove absolutely all friction, then your machine could run for a long, long time. Experiments have been done where people spun a magnetically-levitated rotor in a vacuum chamber, and it ran for many days (without any outside power source) with almost no slowing.

Also, the motions of moons and planets are virtually free of friction, which is why they've been able to "coast" around the sun for billions of years.

However, the laws of thermodynamics say that you can never completely isolate a system 100%. Even if you were able to eliminate all traditional forms of friction, the action of random photons hitting your device would gradually rob it of its momentum. And you cannot eliminate those photons by simply putting your device in the dark; random photons exists in all systems that are above absolute zero temperatature. And the laws of thermodynamics say that you cannot cool a system down to absolute zero.

So, according to thermodynamics (which is a well proven theory), perpetual motion just can't happen. However, I think it is still a worthy endeavor to see just how long you can keep something going by isolating it (as much as possible) from heat and friction.

Answer 5

i think of you are able to properly be perplexed as to what the critics easily recommend whilst they are asserting perpetual action. i will plug a motor right into a wall socket and, given no positioned on and tear, the motor will run perpetually. What a perpetual action gadget capacity is that no exterior ability is presented into the gadget, or if there is, there's a internet output of ability from the gadget that equals the enter. Even those nifty little floaty magnetic tops that decide on the flow ultimately provide up turning using fact of friction from the air. you are able to desire to according to threat positioned the magnetic suitable in a vacuum, yet even in an business "vacuum" there are nevertheless adequate molecules of gas to have interplay with and finally provide up the gadget. And by how, those critics for whom no staute has ever been built? one in each and every of them replaced into Einstein. There are some statues of him, easily.

Answer 6

Whenever two parts of a "machine" meet, there is going to be some friction. Unless magnets keep the parts from touching.
May God bless you.

Answer 7

If you could remove all friction AND wind resitance, then yes it could in theory work. But what would it do? And what would be the point?

Answer 8

You are esentially describing what a satellite does when orbiting a planetary body. There is entropy at work however, nothing goes forever.... some stuff works almost forever.... but never completely.