turning water into hydrogen.  
View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Tower Hobbies
Enter up to 4 keywords or Tower stock numbers
Logged in as Guest



Users viewing this topic: none
  Printable Version
       


OFNA Jammin CRT.5 - ARR
Seller:  jessemxt
Details:   $300.00   |  8/31/2008   |  Classified Ad
We will rotate YOUR AD in this spot if you select "Forum Featured" when placing or editing your ad!

All Forums >> RC Cars, Buggies, Trucks, Tanks and more >> Off Topic Forum - Cars, Trucks, Buggies and more >> turning water into hydrogen.
Page: [1] 2   next >   >>  

Login
Message << Older Topic   Newer Topic >>
turning water into hydrogen. - 11/8/2007 1:22:55 AM   
500 lb. koolaid man



Posts: 890
Joined: 5/22/2006
From: Palm Harbor, FL, USA
Status: offline 		Recently, I've become very interested in the subject of turning normal water into hydrogen, capable of being used for running engines or gas for torches. What I'm interested in specifically is a smaller scale than running a car off water, that's too complex. Anyways, this thread will be for open discussion on the subject, and for my tests of trying to make one of these "fuel cells".

a dune buggy that runs off water.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ3juM6vHwg

This video is also amazing when it comes to info http://youtube.com/watch?v=vm5JhpWt4GQ

Another video definitely worth watching http://youtube.com/watch?v=aGg0ATfoBgo

This guy makes a lot of sense to me and most of my basic ideas of things to try have come from his videos.
http://www.youtube.com/user/ThePowerTube

Maybe one of these fuel cells could run an rc gas or nitro engine? The first water powered rc, now that sounds cool.

From a couple of hours of watching tons of videos and studying the simplest wat to make a water fuel cell, this is what I'm thinking.

Feel free to post comments, questions, etc.


_____________________________

I have too many projects already... but I always find more.
       Post #: 1

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/8/2007 1:56:13 AM   
hands without shadows



Posts: 6038
Joined: 11/23/2005
From: denfield, ON, CANADA
Status: offline 		I have experimented with this a fair bit, mainly for the cool "pop" Hydrogen makes when it burns Basically passing electricity through water separated the Hydrogen and Oxygen atoms. Oxygen bubbles come from the positive anode and hydrogen bubbles come from the negative cathode, in a ratio of one Oxygen atom for every two Hydrogen atoms. In your design the product will be a mixture of Hydrogen and Oxygen (in the perfect mixture for an explosion).

A 9v battery will work as a power supply - for about 2 minutes - and a 12v battery will work ok but it will discharge eventually. I used a converted computer power supply, the same one I use to power my chargers. At one point when everything was running full throttle with a lot of salt and clean electrodes I was drawing somewhere around 13 amps and I filled a balloon in under 7 minutes. I used a regular pop bottle, glued a Y tubing adapter inside of the lid, glued electrodes (copper wires separated by rubber washers) in one end of the Y, and attached a balloon to the other end of the Y to collect gas. Carbon electrodes worked better than copper ones but wore out very fast, your stainless steel will work but I think regular steel would work better. Your whole "rubber washer, stainless steel washer" confuses me and isn't needed.

To harvest any usable gas for an engine from this the Hydrogen and Oxygen cant be mixed and the gasses need to be pressurized, which will require more than hot glue and a peanut butter jar.

_____________________________

_________
O||||||||O

(in reply to 500 lb. koolaid man)
       Post #: 2

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 3:27:28 AM   
500 lb. koolaid man



Posts: 890
Joined: 5/22/2006
From: Palm Harbor, FL, USA
Status: offline 		Thanks for the info hands without shadows, I appreciate it.

I did a simple test today using a plastic container, 2 springs, and a 12v plug-in(whatever they are called).

First, I tried the negative end as a bolt because I saw similar in a youtube video but it was lager scale, well that didn't work. Then I tried a spring on the negative end, leaving just the positive wire in the water like I did with the bolt. That didn't work. I added a spring to both the negative and positive, and wahoo, bubbles. It's a start. I just wanted to start by making sure I could make bubbles. More tests soon, I think next I'm going to create a heat sink looking thing for the negative end, and try that out with the positive end on the spring again.


_____________________________

I have too many projects already... but I always find more.

(in reply to hands without shadows)
       Post #: 3

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 3:47:02 AM   
hands without shadows



Posts: 6038
Joined: 11/23/2005
From: denfield, ON, CANADA
Status: offline 		Greater surface area and small distance between electrodes seem to have the greatest affect on gas production. Perhaps two intertwined but not touching springs (like DNA) or a plate and a heatsink would have good results? Definitely post up the results of your heatsink/spring combo and any further progress you make.

_____________________________

_________
O||||||||O

(in reply to 500 lb. koolaid man)
       Post #: 4

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 6:08:45 AM   
comerford2@msn.com


 

Posts: 1011
Joined: 12/16/2006
From: Philadelphia, PA, USA
Status: online 		I was reading some time ago that it takes more power to make hydrogen then the power you can get from it on a large scale.

(in reply to hands without shadows)
       Post #: 5

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 7:12:52 AM   
calvino


 

Posts: 5997
Joined: 4/17/2007
From: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: hands without shadows

Greater surface area and small distance between electrodes seem to have the greatest affect on gas production. Perhaps two intertwined but not touching springs (like DNA) or a plate and a heatsink would have good results? Definitely post up the results of your heatsink/spring combo and any further progress you make.

now that would be cool, i have also found out that baking soda makes the most bubbles, just a tip

_____________________________

RC18T 6800 Sidewinder Micro 2s lipo, 1980 Goldpan (needs electronics), ST-1, Slow Stick $15 outrunner combo 3s lipo †

(in reply to hands without shadows)
       Post #: 6

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 7:22:26 AM   
Foxy



Posts: 8825
Joined: 3/23/2005
From: Kingston UK, but living in Athens, GREECE
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: comerford2@msn.com

I was reading some time ago that it takes more power to make hydrogen then the power you can get from it on a large scale.


Not true. You know those videos of huge hydrogen bomb explosions (the most destructive weapons we are able to make)? That's from one party balloon full of hydrogen. It was a hydrogen explosion that created the contents of the universe, and it's the fuel for our sun and many other stars. It's pretty serious stuff.

On the subject of making it and using it, Mythbusters did a show about trying to run cars on it, and sure enough, nearly blew themselves up. Be careful with hydrogen it's dangerous stuff.

_____________________________

Foxy. RCU Car Forums Moderator.
These opinions are my own and may not represent the views of RCUniverse.com
Check out my Large Scale Gas RC Car Vids... www.youtube.com/foxy4242

(in reply to comerford2@msn.com)
       Post #: 7

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 2:57:43 PM   
maxxdout



Posts: 2147
Joined: 1/2/2007
From: East Stroudsburg, PA, USA
Status: offline 		I remember a few years ago, my teacher had this big box and he poured a cup of water in it. 4 cups came out!!!!

_____________________________

__.~*`RC10B4RS~SIDEWINDER~FEIGAO 7S~PROTEK 2S 4000 LIPO`*~.__

(in reply to Foxy)
       Post #: 8

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/9/2007 3:33:40 PM   
RCtruckRacer



Posts: 3195
Joined: 6/2/2005
From: Eugene, OR, USA
Status: offline 		Newton's law of Conservation of Energy states that matter is neither created nor destroyed. Getting 4 cups of water from one sounds like a some magic trick - like pouring milk in a newspaper funnel...

As I understand it, the hydrogen bomb is a staged weapon that uses nuclear fission to heat and compress fusion fuel (depleted uranium) to thermonuclear temperatures. The "fuel" used for the fission stage are isotopes of hydrogen: deuterium and tritium. I don't think they actually use hydrogen.

As far as using water as a supply of hydrogen for fuel (electrolosys), it has been an on-going process for years now. When someone makes a water fuel cell that actually works, they will be rich since they will have found a fuel source that can displace oil! Electrolosys is a very inefficient method of producing hydrogen for a power source, far too inefficient to use for just about anything. In a car for instance, the electrical system used to seperate the molecules would run out of juice before the car got very far. Stanley Meyer (spelling?) supposedly has patents on water fuel cells that ran cars. As far as I know, no one has duplicated his work - work which came under a ton of scrutiny. Conspiracy therorists claim he was murdered. Who knows?

Fun Topic!!!!

_____________________________

Some people see the glass half full. Others see it half empty. I see a glass that's twice as big as it needs to be.
My opinions are my own, and are not necessarily those of RCU

(in reply to maxxdout)
       Post #: 9

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/11/2007 2:36:52 AM   
drag racer



Posts: 394
Joined: 5/11/2007
From: Hastings, ON, CANADA
Status: offline 		they have an rc car that runs on water alread. i dunno how it works though. Interesting topic.

_____________________________

Git-r-Done

(in reply to RCtruckRacer)
       Post #: 10

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/11/2007 3:14:41 AM   
CustomTamiyas4Life



Posts: 6773
Joined: 5/4/2005
From: griswold, CT, USA
Status: online 		I think the water powered rc is simply steam powered.

_____________________________

TNX / E-firestorm / Tamiya Rising Storm / mod pede-for sale / walkera 4 / mini-t

(in reply to drag racer)
       Post #: 11

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/11/2007 3:54:18 AM   
hands without shadows



Posts: 6038
Joined: 11/23/2005
From: denfield, ON, CANADA
Status: offline 		RC concept version: http://jalopnik.com/cars/alternative-energy/maybe-next-year-hydrogen-fuel-cell-rc-car-coming-after-the-holidays-220557.php

"Toy" version: http://www.horizonfuelcell.com/tech_toy.htm

_____________________________

_________
O||||||||O

(in reply to CustomTamiyas4Life)
       Post #: 12

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/11/2007 5:22:55 AM   
comerford2@msn.com


 

Posts: 1011
Joined: 12/16/2006
From: Philadelphia, PA, USA
Status: online
quote:

ORIGINAL: foxy42


quote:

ORIGINAL: comerford2@msn.com

I was reading some time ago that it takes more power to make hydrogen then the power you can get from it on a large scale.


Not true. You know those videos of huge hydrogen bomb explosions (the most destructive weapons we are able to make)? That's from one party balloon full of hydrogen. It was a hydrogen explosion that created the contents of the universe, and it's the fuel for our sun and many other stars. It's pretty serious stuff.

On the subject of making it and using it, Mythbusters did a show about trying to run cars on it, and sure enough, nearly blew themselves up. Be careful with hydrogen it's dangerous stuff.




Ok I did not put it right let me restate what I was thinking. hydrogen is a green fuel and has a very good power potential but you need to convert water into hydrogen and it's done most of the time with some kind of other fuel gas, coal fired electric plant. diesel fuel heated to a vapor has a lot of power and gas has a danger people don't see it also has a very good power potential so yes hydrogen is dangerous but so is 20 gallons of gas. As far as the hydrogen bomb I think but not 100% that hydrogen was the catalyst for the reaction for nuclear fusion. We went to the moon on hydrogen powered fuel cells and it is a abundant fuel and only byproduct is water but the real problem today is battary technology because you still need to store the power.

(in reply to Foxy)
       Post #: 13

RE: turning water into hydrogen. - 11/11/2007 5:25:16 AM   
calvino


 

Posts: 5997
Joined: 4/17/2007
From: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: maxxdout

I remember a few years ago, my teacher had this big box and he poured a cup of water in it. 4 cups came out