Can the wick burn?

[DC2]

I thought I remembered reading that the material that they use to make the wicks that are under the atomizer bridge can not possibly come close to burning at the temperatures these devices operate under.

Is that true?

Also, the same question for the polyfill filler material that comes in the cartridges. There are some people that claim that the polyfill material, under normal operation, can singe or melt while still in the cartridge.

Is there any definitive proof of whether or not that can happen?

 

[Kurt]

I thought I remembered reading that the material that they use to make the wicks that are under the atomizer bridge can not possibly come close to burning at the temperatures these devices operate under.

Is that true?

Also, the same question for the polyfill filler material that comes in the cartridges. There are some people that claim that the polyfill material, under normal operation, can singe or melt while still in the cartridge.

Is there any definitive proof of whether or not that can happen?

Hey DC2!

I think at normal power ranges of the 510, that is 2.5 ohm attys and 3.1V from the batt on the coil, the wick cannot burn. I have not seen it myself, although it is easily discolored deeply. I have seen slight fluval singeing, as in a few fibers have clearly fused, but no overt melting or burning. This was with a relatively clogged atty that was getting way too hot. So it is possible, but not normal.

I think when you go to HV, however, things are different. I have heard of heat-resistant Si plugs in a ZFM melting at 6V with a regular 510 atty. Carts can melt. It would all depend on the wattage, I think. A HV atty can have a low enough resistance to bring the coil wattage down.

As related, P = V^2/R. P= power (wattage), V=volts on the coil, R = resistance of the coil.

For a normal 510 batt and atty P=3.1^2/2.5 (for my attys). This is 3.8 watts. A 14500 batt will bring it up to almost 6 watts. Put a LR atty at 1.8 ohms on a 14500, and its 7.6 watts. This seems to be around where I am seeing burning/melting issues, and it gets worse the higher you go in wattage.

Hope this helps, my friend!