Separate Hydrogen and Oxygen from Water Through Electrolysis

Step 7: Further Ideas

When your gas collecting container is full, try lighting it. The hydrogen will give a very satisfying *POP*, and the oxygen won't do anything.

Here's a Video (sorry for not wearing a shirt =0 ):



Notes:

For a bigger and better explosion, put both electrodes into the gas collecting container. Hydrogen needs oxygen to burn, and the ratio of 2:1 is the best ratio. That is what we get when splitting water. You will get a much more powerful explosion.

I've personally always wanted to make a model rocket powered on hydrogen. I know that there is one that is sold on the market, but I don't remember what its called. I'll look for it.

T3Hprogrammer and Kiteman suggest using baking soda rather than salt as an electrolyte. Table Salt (NaCL) has the potential of producing chlorine gas and sodium hydroxide when introduced to electricity.

JakeTobak suggests using platinum electrodes instead of graphite as graphite will chip, splinter, and corrode. They're as cheap as a couple dollars, and can be found on Ebay (thanks Kiteman)

Further Reading:

@ Homemade Hydrogen by Theodore Grey http://www.theodoregray.com/PeriodicTable/Stories/001.1/
@ Fuel from Water: Energy Independence with Hydrogen by Michael A. Peavey via Amazon.com
@ Water Car - How to Turn Water Into Hydrogen Fuel via Amazon.com

Comments

[ammad]

hi
can u plz tell me which is the best metal use for the electrodes for get more hydrogen and for increase the efficiency???????????????
plz ans me soon
thanks

[Jimmy Proton]

dipping steel in strong acids will produce hydrogen and oxygen, i filled Gatorade bottle with it and it made a pretty good boom

[warengadia]

and my last comment is thank you to have i learn if enough picture and steps

[warengadia]

just gonna be great job but your pictures and video is enough so i can understand your work thank you now i will subscribe your picture intro

[danqtoo]

the suggestion to put both electrodes under one container will work - but there is a safety factor to consider: if the container is rather full, and the electrodes accidentally contact one another, there is a (small) possibility of a spark and a huge explosion. This is particularly likely if you were to manually move the electrodes while they are in the container and the power is turned on. So one should be cautioned to have things positioned properly and secured well enough to minimize that possibility, and never move any parts while the battery is connected..

When I was 17, I did mine so it filled a small balloon... lit it with a candle on the end of a pool queue... and was *very* thankful to have that distance! don't do this trick indoors...

[pjpj]

1.light a match
2.blow it out
3. hold it in the oxygen right after you blew it out

The match will start burning again. =+)

[ReCreate]

why? Does it have an overdose of oxygen? Making it burn again from the heat and everything?

[PKM]

Pretty much- the heat of the smouldering match in a pure oxygen atmosphere is enough to set it on fire again. Actually matches aren't great for this as they are chemically treated to stop them smouldering- a thin splinter of dry wood is much better.

[ReCreate]

Ok then...

[placidus52]

for the best explosion use a bigger test tube and fill it with water and then place it over the two electrodes the two full test tubes together will create a 2:1 combination. 2 parts hydrogen one part oxygen, caution do not use glass

[MaDsCiEntist724]

HAve any ideas on how you might turn the gases to liquid oxygen and hydrogen? Oh... Wouldn't liquid Hydrogen be water... ?

[MaDsCiEntist724]

(Confused)

[MaDsCiEntist724]

NVM

[bigroy88]

So, when making a hydrogen boosted vehicle, how would you collect the hydrogen and run it into the intake? Would you have to compress it? Or just let engine vacuum pull it in?

[triggernum5]

You wouldn't compress it, but you'd need a high enough constant, regulated pressure being produced to feed the engine.. That said, you 'could' compress it and regulate a feed, but that would kill even more of the energy since there wouldn't be a useful way to utilize the expansion energy..

[bigroy88]

Another thing, would you collect both the oxygen and hyrogen or just the hydrogen? And where can i find a diagram of exactly how to build one? And would it work for diesels?

[Zeratul98]

Actually, if you take a stick and light it on fire and then blow out the flame you get hot coals. You can put the glowing stick into the oxygen and it will burst into flame again.

[rich070966]

for more info try googling Stanley Meyer -- shows how he made a highly efficient electrolysis system. Despite some of the negative comments about him and his "supposed" system the U S Patent office did grant him numerous patants on making hydrogen.

[gemmangary]

rich070966, There are a lot of items like that that were either confiscated by the u.s. gov or went the same way as the wireless power transmission that Tesla had. Remember power companies don't want free electricity or any other type of power that would change there money making schemes its bad for their business.