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| mercury batteries - Page 4 | |
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| Posted: Mon Jun 4th, 2012 04:13 |
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31st Post |
Robert
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Well done Steve, an enthralling story. Looking forward to the next instalment. :=)
____________________ Robert. |
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| Posted: Mon Jun 4th, 2012 04:32 |
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32nd Post |
steve of oxford
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Robert wrote:Well done Steve, an enthralling story. Actually it's been dead easy to get to the mercury oxide stage. I chuckle to think that the one UK stockist refused to sell me any cos I wasn't big enough, so two fingers to them I just went away and made my own,  If security was their concern, perhaps the goons would have been better off selling me a quantity. As things stand I've made some, and no one knows how much or where I am, or if I am holding ethanol (which basically makes the concoction into mercury fulminate). Like I said, goons. Same to the battery big incs, cut the supply?...no problem I'll just make my own! No one's gonna force me into deliberate obsolescence. It's quite a satisfying achievement to learn that the principle component is a chemical you're not allowed to buy, and end up with home brew in a test tube. Looking at it right now, beautiful red powder. Certainly enough to get a test cell built and did it all with nothing more than an old thermometer and some nitric acid. I'd disclose where I got the nitric acid but not wishing the kill joy authorities an opportunity to remove the supply I can't remember where I got it from, but you can get a litre for about 8 quid...and that makes a lot of mercury nitrate.
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| Posted: Mon Jun 4th, 2012 14:25 |
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33rd Post |
steve of oxford
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Just read a paper this afternoon on microwave pyrolysis. Ran off another batch of mercury nitrate, now drying to crystal....might try and microwave it. If that works it'd be a very controllable way of getting mercury oxide. Crystalline substances should excite very well in microwave radiation, so the theory goes. I'll let you know if I blow the door off the oven.
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| Posted: Mon Jun 4th, 2012 14:58 |
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34th Post |
Robert
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steve of oxford wrote:I'll let you know if I blow the door off the oven. 
____________________ Robert. |
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| Posted: Mon Jun 4th, 2012 15:26 |
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35th Post |
steve of oxford
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Robert wrote:steve of oxford wrote: I did just that when I was five years old...took the door clean off a range. Didn't sit down for a week! Re mercury. My last batch of nitrate is good, the best yet. It instantly went crystalline as it was poured out of the tube into the drying dish, which signifies a very high mercury content. I intend to separate a small quantity and microwave it. This 'should' produce a very good pyrolysis i.e. decomposition into mercury oxide, but with no introduction of impurities which you can't avoid when using a flame. Another interesting discovery today; although I have source of potassium hydroxide (the electrolyte) I also found a source of potassium carbonate, which if heated strongly, gives off carbon dioxide gas, producing potassium oxide. Reacting the oxide with water produces potassium hydroxide. This is handy because the source for the carbonate is the same as for the zinc oxide, so I can virtually get everything from one place, and though they don't sell potassium hydroxide, it should be no real bother to get the Co2 out of the carbonate and then hydrate the oxide left. This is all starting to come together beautifully, but everything hinges on the quality of the HgO, though I'm pretty sure I got good mercury oxide. I could test it by heating and condensing the vapour....which should condense as metal mercury, however I ran out of mercury now and am reluctant to expend any of the oxide I have made. Prefer to go straight to test cell stage with what I have got. On a slightly different approach I do have a source of genuine vermilion, which is mercury ore, i.e. pure mercury sulphide. I am wondering if you could use mercury sulphide directly if you used a sulphur based electrolyte, thus turning mercury metal into nitrate, then into oxide could be avoided altogether. But for now I think I'll progress with an HgO test cell. Maybe try HgS later on. Unfortunately for now I have work and expenditure on the car so I'll have to diversify my time somewhat.
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| Posted: Thu Nov 8th, 2012 03:39 |
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36th Post |
steve of oxford
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Update: Have now established a source of electrolyte, Sodium Hydroxide. There were two electrolytes used in mercury batteries, Potassium Hydroxide and Sodium Hydroxide. The latter preferred for heavier current surge applications and elevated temperatures. Now need to find some thin zinc sheet, zinc oxide, and should be ready to make one. Possibly the zinc sheet can come from an old dry battery casing, the zinc oxide is used a lot in skin cosmetics. Nearly there!
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| Posted: Thu Nov 8th, 2012 09:21 |
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37th Post |
Constable
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Steve Zinc oxide http://www.ebay.com/itm/Zinc-Oxide-Powder-1-lb-with-FREE-SHIPPING-/120567402690 Ed
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| Posted: Thu Nov 8th, 2012 09:23 |
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38th Post |
Constable
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... And at risk appearing "Granny State" and annoying you, take care with the NaOH Ed
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| Posted: Thu Nov 8th, 2012 10:47 |
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39th Post |
steve of oxford
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Constable wrote:... And at risk appearing "Granny State" and annoying you, take care with the NaOH On these premises we don't do nanny state, political correctness, EU bureaucracy or anything like that. It's a little corner of England still defiant. Thanks for the link on zinc oxide, though actually there's a supplier in London who will sell to the public, and he's got ZnO, Mercury ore, Potassiums etc. The sodium hydroxide I found in a rather cunning source, available from any DIY outfit. I also need some graphite to mix with the HgO, but this is found in any carpenter's pencil. The main challenge now is not the chemicals, but designing and producing a case which doesn't leak. I'm initially thinking of a three part case: Delrin body with two steel threaded end caps. In this way the case could be re-fillable. The issue here is that the case for my cell application has to be a mere 11.6mm X 3.6mm, so some careful lathe work is needed and a very fine thread on the end caps
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| Posted: Sun Nov 11th, 2012 03:30 |
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40th Post |
steve of oxford
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Constable wrote:Steve Many thanks for that link Ed. However I can report I have now ordered the final chemicals needed, i.e. Zinc Oxide powder, and powdered Mercury ore. I've opted for Sodium Hydroxide electrolyte rather than potassium, since I already have a large amount in stock. It will make no difference to the cell voltage. I did have a small amount of metal mercury, which I've taken to mercury nitrate and pyrolised to pure mercury oxide and it should be more than enough quantity to make a cathode of the first test cell. In future I plan to obtain metal mercury from mercury ore, which I've found a good supply of. For this I will need to build a small propane powered furnace and condenser, though with my intended design I'm confident I should have mercury steadily dripping down a condenser outlet into a flask. Amazing that despite the EU and it's spineless British government banning everything containing mercury, I was still able to do this, and with constituents widely available. You just need to know where to look. (probably some filthy grubby EU lobbyist banned it because he personally had a stockpile, thus creating a rarity and driving the value up - corruption again) But for me the most rewarding part was making near as damn pure mercury oxide all by myself, after getting refused business by a certain namby pamby British chemical company. Unless anyone knows different I reckon I must be the only individual in the world who's making his own mercury cells, after searching for many months I've not found anyone else doing this.
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