Identified: Art Bell's "UFO" Aluminum Louvered Sheets - Heat Exchanger Fins

"Arts Parts" refers to a collection of objects that were supposedly anonymously sent to Art Bell.
https://web.archive.org/web/20010614020521/http://www.artbell.com/roscrash.html

The "vent" material is very interesting:

That's a much more specific look. Very similar to air-conditioning vents, but on a dollhouse scale.

UPDATE Dec 12 2019 - The following is a summary of the identification from the thread below.

It's almost 100% certain this is a sheet of louvered fins for a heat exchanger (like a radiator or air conditioner).

Here's a VERY good match.

Source: http://www.daiwaracinglabo.com/about/

Note the exact same pattern of alternating direction blocks of 10 louvers, with long vertical grooves between the louvers where they are bent into an S-shape.

Here's another example showing the alternating directions of the louver pitches.
https://www.intechopen.com/books/heat-exchangers-advanced-features-and-applications/comprehensive-study-of-heat-exchangers-with-louvered-fins
View attachment 38972


And another, showing the normal zigzag structure of the fins, with some fins partially flattened.
View attachment 38971
https://www.dewitts.com/blogs/news/what-is-serpentine-fin

Posted on June 12, 2018 by Tom DeWitt

Automotive radiators use a thin foil material, rolled formed into a corrugated pattern, to transfer heat from the cooling tubes to the air. During the roll forming process small windows or louvers are stamped into the foil. The louvers are formed in a group on one half of the material and then a mirror opposite on the other. As air passes through the radiator core, the louvers deflect the air flow in a S-type or snake pattern. As a result, the term "serpentine" was adopted. Louver pattern, angle, and width can all have a specific effect on heat transfer.

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Well done @deirdre, who first found this connection.

 

That's a much more specific look. Very similar to air-conditiong vents, but on a dollhouse scale.

the vents are going in different directions. almost like you're supposed to cut them out individually and use them for something else.

 

It's possible it is a dollhouse accessory, a version of this, intended to be cut into individual registers

Seems unlikely, but not impossible.

I've looked through lots of "aluminum perforated sheet" type image results, not seen anything similar

 

or maybe even the 'louvres' are meant to be individual parts? you know like those gold things you hammer into picture frames? Not those of course as those have nail teeth and bell's 'vents' look super shoddily made.

I think retro kitchens had wall vents. but seems like too many louvres for the size.

 

From Reddit:
Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/ckaja9/sheet_of_tiny_vents_supposedly_ufo_related/evladsl/

I haven't seen it in decades. but they used to make window screens for sunny locations with tiny louvers instead of mesh. The gaps were too small to let bugs in. you could still see through. but the louvers blocked direct sun in the heat of the day.

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Some kind of thermal radiant barrier is interesting. There's some similar things if you look for "radiant barrier" in attics or greenhouses.

 

The "vent" material is very interesting:
View attachment 37854

That's a much more specific look. Very similar to air-conditiong vents, but on a dollhouse scale.

Not unlike a component part used for making miniature venetian-blind dynodes, used in photomultipliers.

 

they are the perfect size for 1/4 scale dollhouse shutters. (or maybe even cupola windows) but everything im seeing is wood.

 

Another suggestion via Reddit:
Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/whatisthisthing/comments/ckaja9/sheet_of_tiny_vents_supposedly_ufo_related/evmk48u/


https://archive.org/details/KaiserAluminumShadeScreeningANewWayToKeepHomes/page/n9

 

Another suggestion via Reddit:

each vent is only like 3/8" or 1/4" long. (if they were bigger they would be super cute vents for birdhouses!)

 

Looks promising,

Source: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/kaiser-aluminum-louver-screen-1950-1854140266

But the size is wrong

 

they could possibly also be for salesmen's displays of some gizmo. I don't know if salesmen still use those types of things, but they used to have mini versions of whatever they were selling to carry around to companies.. or as point of purchase displays so the customer can see it small.

 

It's entirely possible it's something very obscure, used in fairly rare machines, like lab equipment or something. But given all the similar kinds of things, there nothing really to indicate it's of alien origin.

 

And so, the thread changes subjects to a collection of metal artifacts sent to the late Art Bell and right away I recognized this "vent" as it is being called.

View attachment 38923

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Most computers back in the day had vents like this on the rear side of the hardbox to help cool the internal systems. Also, I recognize these as used in manufacturing processes where the machine would punch out the strips and attach them to other parts.

As someone else pointed out previously in this thread, the "vent" is probably the dynode (a kind of electrode) of a 'venetian-blind' photomultiplier tube. In this kind of photomultiplier an array of oppositely oriented 45-degrees metal surfaces creates an electron cascade which amplifies the (very weak) signal generated by the incoming photon(s).

In this image the venetian-blind type is on the left. The rows of 45-degrees oriented dynodes are realized in practice with slotted metal sheets just as TTSA's.

Unfortunately I could not find a good picture of the slotted sheets. This is the best one, the 'venetian-blinds' are seen from the side:

 

As someone else pointed out previously in this thread, the "vent" is probably the dynode (a kind of electrode) of a 'venetian-blind' photomultiplier tube.

If you notice the solid strips between those vents appear awful soft and thin. They were probably manufactured with the intention of separating the columns before use. The depressions there look soft enough to cut with a boxknife, don't they? Also, imagine how flimsy it must be if picked up with either end column, they should be anticipated to instantly droop and bend under their own weight.

I wonder what alloy this vent is made of.

 

If you notice the solid strips between those vents appear awful soft and thin. They were probably manufactured with the intention of separating the columns before use. The depressions there look soft enough to cut with a boxknife, don't they? Also, imagine how flimsy it must be if picked up with either end column, they should be anticipated to instantly droop and bend under their own weight.

View attachment 38944
I wonder what alloy this vent is made of.

I m'everything but an expert in photomultipliers tubes A quick search turned out this:

The TTSA 'material' is probably a sheet of dynodes, which will be cut out (as you suggest) and then assembled in stacks into the tubes. They should be rather small, I cannot say for sure but a single dynode array could have a length on the order of tens of millimeters.

Another thought: if they are dynodes they are probably in an intermediate working stage, before the superficial oxidation referred to in the above document (or they would not be shiny). So I'd bet them to be made of AgMg, or CuBe, or NiAl

 

Well, I'm not that confident anymore in the venetian-blind dynode hypothesis. This because I searched photomultiplier tubes and I did not find any which could have had rectangular dynodes. All the venetian-blind PMTs I found are round and with a head-on window, which means that the dynodes are probably circular. There may have been venetian-blind PMTs with rectangular dynodes but I have no evidence for it.

Pros for the 'vents' to be dynodes:

• Venetian-blind PMTs dynodes have the same kind of slotted fins
• From the pictures it looks the orientation of the fins switches 90 degrees from a single piece to the next one, just like it should be for dynodes meant to be stacked one upon the other
• The size of the pieces and of the slots looks in the ballpark of dynode sizes

Cons:

• No positively identified model of venetian-blind PMTs with rectangular dynodes

 

Well, I'm not that confident anymore in the venetian-blind dynode hypothesis. This because I searched photomultiplier tubes and I did not find any which could have had rectangular dynodes.

I feel like it's something relatively old and obscure - otherwise, it would have been found by now. Like some kind of valve manufacturing material (or something) briefly made in the 1940s that someone happened to have a sheet of, which they found in the attic.

 

Well, I'm not that confident anymore in the venetian-blind dynode hypothesis. This because I searched photomultiplier tubes and I did not find any which could have had rectangular dynodes. All the venetian-blind PMTs I found are round and with a head-on window, which means that the dynodes are probably circular. There may have been venetian-blind PMTs with rectangular dynodes but I have no evidence for it.

Pros for the 'vents' to be dynodes:

• Venetian-blind PMTs dynodes have the same kind of slotted fins
• From the pictures it looks the orientation of the fins switches 90 degrees from a single piece to the next one, just like it should be for dynodes meant to be stacked one upon the other
• The size of the pieces and of the slots looks in the ballpark of dynode sizes

Cons:

• No positively identified model of venetian-blind PMTs with rectangular dynodes

Don't give up.
https://www.hamamatsu.com/eu/en/product/optical-sensors/pmt/pmt_tube-alone/metal-package-type/index.html

 

Don't give up.
https://www.hamamatsu.com/eu/en/product/optical-sensors/pmt/pmt_tube-alone/metal-package-type/index.html
View attachment 38963

Thank you Clouds!! You were the one who originally proposed the dynode hypothesis, right?

And I had even seen those on the Hamamatsu catalogue.. but missing the 'venetian-blind' magic word I did not pay much attention, bad bad xD

By the way, there are also devices called 'electron multipliers' which have a similar structure (and a similar operation). Some examples:

 

"Side Window Photomultiplier Tubes" seem quite promising. As the slotted area has a similar aspect ratio to the sheet.

Source: https://www.findlight.net/light-analysis/detectors/photomultiplier-tubes-pmt/side-window-bialkali-photomultiplier-tube

Source: https://www.etsy.com/listing/557009136/9781b-emi-29mm-113-side-window-vintage

 

"Side Window Photomultiplier Tubes" seem quite promising. As the slotted area has a similar aspect ratio to the sheet.
View attachment 38965
View attachment 38966
Source: https://www.findlight.net/light-analysis/detectors/photomultiplier-tubes-pmt/side-window-bialkali-photomultiplier-tube

Source: https://www.etsy.com/listing/557009136/9781b-emi-29mm-113-side-window-vintage

Probably not venetian blind types though, by the look of them.

 

a super weird thing that popped up in my google. louvered fins

 

Very nice deirdre, expecially the last one is quite a good visual match.

So.. let me see if I remember well.. we have a sputtering target, a piece of layered industrial waste, and venetian-blind dynodes or louvered fins.. can we move the thread status to 'debunked' ?

 

can we move the thread status to 'debunked' ?

I don't remember what all the actual claims were. but aliens probably have radiators on their space ships too.

 

https://www.dewitts.com/blogs/news/what-is-serpentine-fin

Posted on June 12, 2018 by Tom DeWitt

Automotive radiators use a thin foil material, rolled formed into a corrugated pattern, to transfer heat from the cooling tubes to the air. During the roll forming process small windows or louvers are stamped into the foil. The louvers are formed in a group on one half of the material and then a mirror opposite on the other. As air passes through the radiator core, the louvers deflect the air flow in a S-type or snake pattern. As a result, the term "serpentine" was adopted. Louver pattern, angle, and width can all have a specific effect on heat transfer.

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For comparison:

Very promising.

 

Very much indeed !! deirdre and West, you rock

 

After looking at some other examples I have to say it's almost 100% certain this is a sheet of louvered fins for a heat exchanger (like a radiator or air conditioner). Look at the long vertical grooves between the louvers where they are bent into an S-shape. It's identical to the DeWitts example.

Here's another example showing the alternating directions of the louver pitches, as seen in Art's Parts.
https://www.intechopen.com/books/heat-exchangers-advanced-features-and-applications/comprehensive-study-of-heat-exchangers-with-louvered-fins

Well done @deirdre!

 

Here's a VERY good match.

Source: http://www.daiwaracinglabo.com/about/
vs:

 

Well done @deirdre!

just for disclosure: I couldn't figure out why there were no dollhouse floor registers (they make dollhouse accessories for literally everything!), so I finally thought maybe they'd be under "miniature heat exchanges" vs "registers"... and the louver fins were on the images page.

 

Note the exact same pattern of alternating direction blocks of 11 louvers, with long vertical grooves between the louvers where they are bent into an S-shape.

 

If I remember correctly, Art said that the parts were found out in the desert somewhere. So radiator parts or auto sunshades would be logical... but didn't Bell have the alloys analyzed at one time?

 

If I remember correctly, Art said that the parts were found out in the desert somewhere. So radiator parts or auto sunshades would be logical... but didn't Bell have the alloys analyzed at one time?

I just saw a recent interview with Linda Howe on the Black Vault. she read the letter the anonymous guy sent her about the materials (approx. 13:00 mins in) and the letter said "sent to Patterson AF base from New Mexico".

Then around 30 mins she is talking about testing. she names a few guys (like Whitely Strieber, who might have tested other bits) but she only tested on Art Bells behalf the little dot looking things. she doesn't say anything about having the other pieces tested. (the pieces in this thread anyway). of course it was an anonymous microbiologist who tested it and she knew him from him working with her on crop circles. He allegedly told her the same thing the grandfather allegedly told his young grandchildren back in the early 70s. so...

Anyway the story, the letter she reads gives, from start to finish is so full of holes (and hearsay) … it's weird.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFTq0oSw_HQ

 

I just saw a recent interview with Linda Howe on the Black Vault. she read the letter the anonymous guy sent her about the materials (approx. 13:00 mins in) and the letter said "sent to Patterson AF base from New Mexico".

Then around 30 mins she is talking about testing. she names a few guys (like Whitely Strieber, who might have tested other bits) but she only tested on Art Bells behalf the little dot looking things. she doesn't say anything about having the other pieces tested. (the pieces in this thread anyway). of course it was an anonymous microbiologist who tested it and she knew him from him working with her on crop circles. He allegedly told her the same thing the grandfather allegedly told his young grandchildren back in the early 70s. so...

Anyway the story, the letter she reads gives, from start to finish is so full of holes (and hearsay) … it's weird.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFTq0oSw_HQ

Thanks---I remember the Bismuth Alloy part now. I'm guessing that the square pieces were probably used to keep the louvers from vibrating out of place when the radiator is assembled.

 

I think it's well worth repeating that this bit of a car radiator has exactly the same provenance as the "metamaterial" getting attention via TTSA. They both came from the same anonymous source to Art Bell, who published some analysis of both of them 1996, on the same page, with similar levels of bemusement.

https://web.archive.org/web/20010815220312/http://www.artbell.com/rosreprt.html

The vent, so called because of its vent-like appearance (see Art's photo), had dimensions of 4.9 cm by 6.2 cm; the thickness was 0.157 mm (average of 3 measurements) on the edge (i.e. not over slits). The thickness over the slits was 0.304 mm (average of 6 measurements). The weight was 1.24 gm. Using the edge-thickness we calculate a density of 2.60 gm/cc. (If it is assumed that the slits are just cuts in the metal they should not affect the overall density.)

The slits are in 24 "groups" with 10 parallel slits one mm apart in each group. The lengths of the slits are 8 mm. When held up to the light at an angle, light can be seen through the parallel slits. The slits in each group appear oriented opposite to those in the adjacent group. That is, if considered to act in a vent-like manner, air going through the slits would be directed "up" in one group and "down" in the adjacent group.

A small piece of the vent on one corner was removed for analysis. One edge of this piece corresponds to a slit edge. An SEM image is seen in photo 6.

EDS showed it to consist primarily of aluminum (Fig. 8). This was similar for the three different sections that seemed to have a different textural appearance. Granules seen at high magnification exhibited the EDS pattern shown in Fig. 9. In this case the granules showed a content similar to the metal strip granules -- i.e. aluminum with small amounts of iron, manganese, calcium and silicon.

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Later they were taken over by Linda Moulton Howe.

 

One thing that interested me about the picture of the "collection" in the OP, is the 28 or so small cubes and a few small rounds pictured.

I bet they were included in the "collection" because they felt very heavy / dense, but were obviously not lead.
Must be Alien right?

Well if anyone has a kid who was / is in cub scouts and if your are serious about the pinewood derby,
then you will instantly recognize these as tungsten cubes and rounds commonly used in the
building of fast / thin ladder type pinewood cars.

I have a bunch of them still in the basement.
They come in varying sizes but typically 1/4 inch.
Search for "pinewood tungsten cubes" on ebay.

Pete

 

I bet they were included in the "collection" because they felt very heavy / dense, but were obviously not lead.

No, they are aluminum:
https://web.archive.org/web/20010815220312/http://www.artbell.com/rosreprt.html

The chips corresponded to 5 squares, 1 circle and 2 ellipsoid items. All 5 square chips appeared essentially identical with respect to size and physical appearance. All 5 weighed 160 mg. The diameter of the circular chip and the smaller diameter of the ellipsoid chip were similar in size to the lengths of the sides of the square chips. The circular chip weighted 119 mg. and the two ellipsoid chips weighed 168 mg. (These measurements are all within plus or minus one mg for each type.)

At this point, analyses have been conducted only on the square chips. Using a micrometer, a representative square chip had the dimensions: 6.368 mm x 6.361 mm x 1.596 mm. This gives a volume of 64.65 mm^3. Using a weight of 160 mg, this would correspond to a density of 2.47 mg/mm^3. The squares had two distinguishable sides: a "top" side with rounded edges, and a "bottom" side that was squared off --as if they had possibly been "punched out" from the top. Using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), photographs of the top side (photo 1) and the bottom side (photo 2) were generated.

The SEM was configured for energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) which allows determination of the elemental content of the area being scanned by the electron beam. The bombardment of electrons results in the release of X-rays whose wavelengths are characteristic of the elements being targeted. A detector is able to translate this information into specific "peaks" which are then recorded. The analyses showed that over a broad (averaged) area on the surface of the top and bottom of the square chips (Figure 1 and Figure 2), only aluminum (Al) could be detected. It was also noted that despite the differences in apparent texture on the sides of the chips, the EDS spectra were essentially identical (not shown) -- i.e. only aluminum was detected in both the rougher and smoother portions. The density of aluminum is 2.7 and thus close to the value of 2.47 determined from our calculation. The curved top edges might contribute to the small difference.

High magnification showed small granular particles embedded in the surface of the squares (photo 3 and photo 4). These had sizes of just a few microns (um). EDS showed that these contained silicon (Si) (Fig. 3).

A square chip was embedded in epoxy, cut through the middle and polished in order to obtain a good cross section for SEM and EDS analyses. The SEM was done using a "backscattering" configuration which allows heavier elements to look brighter than less-heavy elements. Photo 5 shows that there are white (i.e. brighter) particulate flake-like materials scattered through the aluminum. These particles had a high iron (Fe) content as indicated in Fig.5 where the area measured was within a single particle. Small amounts of silicon (Si) and manganese (Mn) were also evident. The elements in these particles were not detectable when EDS was measured over a broad area of the chip cross-section (Fig. 4), presumably because of their small respective areas.

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One suggestion (on the Art Bell page) is that they are the result of punching square holes in an aluminum sheet.

Like this video, except square:
Source: https://youtu.be/JmAyep2V-Cw?t=471
See the tub of leftover pieces.

 

One suggestion (on the Art Bell page) is that they are the result of punching square holes

that seems to be called "blanking". (they have a name for everything!)

 

Here's a video, making a radiator for cars.......showing the "opposite facing vents" being stamped-out. These are from copper sheet because copper conducts heat so well. Though not all are made from copper, because copper is expensive.


Here's the top (or bottom) of a vehicle radiator......

(source "One Dirt" off-road site. )

 

Reading the linked Art Bell post........ex~ "This letter was sent to Art and arrived on April 18, 1996. Along with this letter were pieces of various metals." ~ex.
....the story is even more farfetched than the "mysterious" metals.
In other words, if the 2nd-hand story is unbelievable, then the metal evidence can't be considered as "alien origin"....... just of "unknown origin". And we debunked it, visually.

The big disc certainly looks like a typical milled aluminum blank or billet.

 

a super weird thing that popped up in my google. louvered fins

Approaching a quarter century and millions of eyeballs until someone’s tenacity finally pays off. Excellent effort.

Now we can conclusively, without doubt, state with utmost factuality the alien spaceships require heat dissipation.

Great work.