tech e blog

Larger capacitors tend to consist of tubes of metal films rolled with an insulator, and a chemical solution to permeate the insulator and create the desired dielectric properties. The chemicals are often held in the tube with a rubber cork, so that if the capacitor gets too warm it can blow the cork. The designer never envisioned someone submerging the whole thing in a liquid. Undoubtedly the liquid chemicals in the cap, which are corrosive, will tend to flow into the liquid outside. If the caps are tantalum, it's a somewhat porous material. Eventually the dielectric properties will be damaged. Tantalum caps tend to explode, creating tiny craters in the chip, and burning surrounding material. This is a very bad idea. It might work for this computer, for a while, but it's not something you should be doing. The designers of components used in the computer had enough trouble, without coming to a secret worldwide agreement that it's ok to submerge all components in mineral oil. At least, if they did make such a secret agreement, they didn't send the memo to me.