Big mistake in that paper!!  His equation (4) is wrong.  He admits that the repulsive energy formula for each spherical shell is that used classically for determining the electron radius which assumes the electron to be a spherical surface carrying its charge.  That is the electron as an isolated sphere.  The self capacitance of an isolated sphere of radius a is given by C = 4*pi*epsilon₀*a.  Thus its electrical energy by his equation (1) is given by either of the two terms in his (4).  That is also by his admission the attractive potential energy and (since he has used it as such) the repulsive potential energy for such a single sphere.  I.e for an isolated sphere however you describe the energy you get the same result.  His mistake is in using an isolated sphere formula for each of his two spheres in his (4) and that throws the whole thing out of the window.  It is quite clear to me that the repulsive surface tension in a spherical shell of charge will be severely moderated by having another spherical shell of opposite charge close to that surface.  He has not taken that into account.
Smudge   

This also reminds me of another paper (attached) where a generator idea is proposed by mechanically removing the dielectric of a capacitor. They have not build an experimental setup of this to validate the theory. But if the paper in this thread is right it would mean that you get more energy out of the capacitor than the mechanical energy needed to remove the dielectric.

@F6,
If the connection to a parallel plate electrode is an extension to the parallel plate what force drives the electrons along that extension?  I has to be the repulsive force in the plane of the electrode, so that force does do work.  In the spherical capacitor the two forces are normal to each other but I stand by my view that the other plate of opposite charge influences the magnitude of the repulsive tension.
Smudge

With all the theory put forth on this thread, I'm hoping someone can explain the following simple parallel resonant circuit C1 displacement current to me.  This is a simulation but a bench circuit with equivalent values performs exactly the same.

The driving source is a low impedance sine voltage generator V1 running for 1 cycle of the resonance frequency at 22.508kHz.  Several things to note IMO.  First, the rise of IC1 at the very start of the cycle to a level of ~28ma.  I have added some esr to C1 which produces the rise time shown which is very close to bench circuitry.  Second, the peak current ratio of IL1 to IC1 is ~2 and the apparent load to V1 is a constant current of ~28ma.

Next is the same circuit but V1 is turned off at the 22.21us point in time thus clamping VL1 at ground level.  The current IL1 is clamped but note what happens to IC1.

Last is the same circuit driven by a constant current sine generator I1 that has a peak current of 100ma but is shut off at .3 of the cycle or ~13.3us.  At this point in time, the current form I1 is removed from node VL1 and L1 and C1 are still connected.  Again note what happens with IC1.  BTW, the current directions arrows for L1 and C1 are towards ground respectively.

Perhaps this is well known to you all but to me this is both interesting and confusing.  I have tried to tap this so called displacement current but to no avail.

The coulombic field seems to be rigidly linked to the charge, which I always admitted. The idea that this field would be generated by the charge has always seemed to me unfounded. The charge and its field are one and the same object. We can see it as a rubber ball extending to infinity. Only when we accelerate it, it deforms, and the deformations propagate at the speed c. The charge does not emit virtual photons or other entities that would become independent, the charge is not a generator.

In other words the field of the charge does not propagate, it travels with it according to Newton's first law, it is itself a part of the charge.

So if I have a large sphere atop a high tower and I feed a fast rise time pulse of voltage to that sphere, and I have a measuring instrument atop another high tower some distance away, and I ensure that the instrument only responds to the radial E field from that transmitting sphere, I should measure zero time between the input pulse edge and the received pulse edge?
...
Smudge

Same remark as to Smudge. Such an experiment proves nothing, because of the acceleration of the electrons and the radiation of an EM wave, and all the more so as the pulse has a steep front.

This leaves no doubt that at constant speed, the coulombic field accompanies the electron, it does not propagate from the electron.

And how do you make an electrostatic field collapse without current?

That 28ma is for that first cycle.  You don't say what resistance you give L but whatever it is the load current will not be constant, it will rise over many cycles, the time constant of that rise being L/R.
Yes, C1 now sees a short (the zero impedance source) so it discharges to zero volts and zero current over the same CR time constant as its initial charge.  L1 is clamped at that 56mA level but in practice that would decay over the L/R time constant.  With that short across the LC circuit it can no longer resonate.

Now we have a different regime, when the infinite impedance current source is switched off the LC circuit can continue to resonate as shown.  At the start the rising sine wave current gets shared between the L and the C with initially C taking all the current.  The IC1 and IL1 current waveforms there so not follow the sine function.  If you did not switch off the current at 13.3uS the L and C currents would gradually build up until they do each follow a sine function that is 90 degrees shifted from the drive current, they would reach peak values Q times the drive current.  That step function change in IC1 is the current in L suddenly not being sourced from the input drive, so it switches to being sourced from C instead.

The displacement current through C1 is the IC1 current.  Tapping into it in the circuit is not going to lead to anything magic.  The only hope for anything unusual is getting inside the dielectric and doing something their.  Perhaps one type of experiment worth pursuing is to have a large ring core with a toroidal winding on it.  Place circular electrodes each side of the hole in the donut so that you have a working space in that hole.  Connect the electrodes together with a wire that passes round the outside of the core so the system becomes a transformer with a one turn secondary driving the capacity between the electrodes.  Now we can place a test device inside the donut gap that responds to the displacement current flowing through it.  That test device could be a smaller toroid that would show an induced voltage from the displacement current.  Not sure this would lead anywhere but it would be an interesting demonstration.

Smudge