Gallium/Aluminum alloy generating Hydrogen

[nightvidcole]

C'mon, no experiment with hydrogen is awesome until you light it with a match...

[zaxs142]

Nice but so much for an on/off switch

[bulletproof2353]

couldnt we just make or try to use different plates used in electrolyzers out of these or similar metals or alloys?im sure not every combination of metal plates and metal alloy plates has been tried in electrolyzers,like when you make a battery out of a potato or anything really you use copper and zinc plates for the best result,maybe there is a certain combo of metal or alloy plates that could improve the efficiency of electrolyzers to a degree that we dont need fossil fuels anymore

[jandjtechniks]

Try magnesium and aluminum, cheaper,better, and use functinal water instead of water with an electrolyte you will have a slower seperation rate of the 2 metals and they are reuseable and when the two metals are forged together they act as an accelerant to produce hydrogen, good luck

[Coingg]

so what about the bi product?

[instinct5am]

so what is the purpose of that...? you've gonna drink it?

[hkparker]

@instinct5am The purpose of this is that we can generate hydrogen gas for energy from something we have an excess of, aluminum

[instinct5am]

@hkparker ahhh...i see...tnx

[ductape95]

What is the chemical reaction that happens here?

[mahcatfan]

dude this is not new knowledge. no one buy this gallium aluminum alloy, it contains aluminum hydroxide which is extremely caustic. the reason this is not used as a fuel is that 1. gallium is expensive and

2. alluminum hydroxide is toxic.

[JonMeany]

if it were doing what he says it would be a much more violent reaction. This in all likelihood is really just zinc and HCl.

[JonMeany]

that isn't water. It's some sort of acid, probably HCl, What's happening the metal he dropped in is bonding with the nonmetal in whatever acid he used, probably chlorine from hydrochloric acid, and dissolving in the solution, this then rejects the hydrogen which is given off by the solution. yes he is producing hydrogen, no it didn't happen just by mixing metal and water. There are some metals which can break the bonds in H2O, specifically alkali metals, but that isn't what is happening here,

[AHW214]

Could I make a alloy that would react with water to make hydrogen by smearing liquid gallium on aluminum foil? Also what are the products of the water and aluminum reaction and how should I dispose of them. Are any toxic fumes given off?

[Macs101]

i bet u could power a flame lamp off that stuff, and heres the kicker, no hydroflourocarbons! =D

[superwhiz88]

i think these gallium is nothing more then aluminum powder wt dry sodium peroxide mix in to ball shape .. when you add water .... if you relley want to save money.. use soda cans and cheap old drain cleaner and just add water.. it last way longer..

[KEngel1021]

superwhiz88: Gallium is an element with the symbol Ga. Liquid Gallium dissolves the Aluminum and strips off the oxide layer so that the aluminum can react directly with the water breaking it apart. The Aluminum is used up but the Gallium collects at the bottom and can be reused over and over.

[libtechsk8er]

When I first started selling gallium, a person emailed me wanting to buy a large amount of gallium. He actually said he wanted to power a locomotive with it, and asked me how much I thought he would need!

Anyway, I don't sell gallium anymore because I received a threatening email for not shipping it in full HAZMAT compliance, so I can now recommend GalliumSource(dot)com to buy gallium.

[crazychrisb5]

Hey WaterFireSoup, where can I email you?

[libtechsk8er]

@crazychrisb5 You can contact him at info (at) galliumsource(DOT)com  - It's on his website (see the description)

[anorwood84]

I cant say this is a new discovery to solve our oil dependency. Else we would be driving cars powered with water and any Alkali metal. As they all produce hydrogen when reacted with water. But we don't because id rather buy 10 gallons of gas, than 200 pounds of sodium.

[WaterFireSoup]

Wrong....Using " Any Alkali " metal wouldn't work...It is to hard to capture the Hydrogen without ignition.

[KEngel1021]

I am doing this with Gallium and Aluminum but I also mixed in a lot of Magnesium powder to the point where it was grainy more like damp clay when it cooled. Anyway, I put a little in water in a test tube and I think the reaction is slower than if I had used just aluminum.

[Azeralas]

I saw N64 Pod racer in the background! AWESOME GAME!

[cimon9999]

Good stuff. What % Ga is that? Does it fully react? I've tried this myself. The grey precipitate eventually settles and turns black, correct? So you have white Al(OH)3 and black stuff. Is that just an optical trick and it's still elemental gallium or has it oxidised? The mechanisms of reaction are, I reckon, intergranular corrosion and selective leaching because gallium is cathodic w.r.t. aluminium, what do you think? Thanks!

[TheNilvarg]

You should have held a lit match at the mouth of the bottle.

[misterflip20]

meh, you wouldnt be able to see the flame...just intense heat and condensation :)

[lookwhoscomin]

yaws

same old sodium + water experiment

he is just tricking us with a different name

LOOOL

[WaterFireSoup]

Sodium doesn't sink....

[lookwhoscomin]

lol duhh i was being sarcastic and was making a point that i was expecting a huge explosion giving out lots of light [=

[mahcatfan]

it does not, but there are other alkali metals that do sink. furthermore, what that guy i holding is not alluminum hydroxide. How do i know this? handling aluminum hydroxide hurts because its strongly caustic.

[iwasapenny]

What the hell are you talking about? AlOH isn't caustic at all, its used as a digestive aid you tool.

No, only two of the alkali metals sink, rubidium and cesium, if you think this is rubidium or cesium, you are a complete moron. Read the periodic table some time.

Since I know you don't have a basic grasp of chemistry, you'll probably say: "what about calcium and strontium?"

First of all, not alkali metals, second of all, they are dark and dull in appearance.

[tproduction1]

so how do you get the gallium back? its over $2 a gram...

[libtechsk8er]

When the gallium/aluminum compound reacts with the water, it produces the pure gallium, as well as the hydrogen and Al(OH)3, so it is easy to get your gallium back.

[magemager0]

isnt H like really flammable? and i never knew it was that color

[timothyp2009]

H2 is colourless, the thing in the pot i think is gallium oxide... hmmmm or some other compound anyway, good question.

[magemager0]

i thought he said it was a gallium alluminum alloy or are u saying that the gas is gallium oxide?

[timothyp2009]

are you stupid, H2 is colourless and is whats being given off, like i said so the gas isnt gallium oxide, but i think thats whats in the pot isnt it?

[magemager0]

ur confusing and ur making absolutely no sense so just dont message me ne more

[timothyp2009]

lol, THE GREY STUFF, IM TRYING TO THINK ABOUT WHAT IT IS.!!!

[magemager0]

the grey stuff in the beginning? is gallium or the grey stuff comin off the gallium,,sry i was confused and misunderstood

[timothyp2009]

the grey stuff thats given off

[ChrisPCrunchy]

Aluminium to Gallium ratio has to be about 10 to 1 or 10% Gallium. Mercury is far cheaper as ratio is down to 100 to 1 or 1% Mercury about the amount in a flourescent lamp. Mercury is far cheaper although care has to be taken with handling and recovery of the Mercury for recycling.

[jojothemapler]

Dont play with that kid that Hydrogen can make a explosion s big as ur Nieghboorhood with a bottle that small... i leared this in Scince :D

[dwerg2k]

FAIL

[badboy81791]

were did u get the gallium and y did u waste it when its so expensive

[mchboy1]

isn't hydrogen EXTREMELY flammable??

[AnselmoFanZero]

Nope...you need some O2 as well.

[xHaRdCoReJuGGaLo15x]

ur such a fag kid

get some real videos

[AltheRake]

Other than hydrogen, what is the chemical by-product of this reaction? The water appears quite murky. If used to harness the hydrogen, what would be done with the waste water-compound and is that substance harmful to the environment?

[hessy11]

read about it on wikipedia

[SevenMinusOne]

"Gallium applications-

As part of an energy storage mechanism:

Aluminium is reactive enough to reduce water to hydrogen, being oxidized to aluminium oxide. However, the aluminium oxide forms a protective coat which prevents further reaction. When gallium is alloyed with aluminium, the coat does not form, thus the alloy can potentially provide a solid hydrogen source for transportation purposes, which would be more convenient than a pressurized hydrogen tank."

[hessy11]

you wikid that one didnt you

[Meleeman07]

that would explain the quotation marks, wouldn't it?

[GingleGangle1]

Did u make this Gallium alloy?

[ChrisLizzy4]

Where can I buy gallium? I need some for my HHO generator

[xlsniper50000]

how much is the galluim you are selling becuase i only want a small bit of it to show to my class

[geofftoms3]

how mach gallium to alemenum and water do you need

[sunnycheetah]

What practical use does this have and how much do raw materials cost versus output in liters? In other words, is it worth it? If i can run a gas cooker on it or a car then yes, but then i would have to source the metals locally in South Africa, very interesting reaction though, but why is this not commonly used? Does it produce chlorine during reaction? any other backdraws? be free to drop me a private note, it's interesting to me :)

[abdiel357]

DUDE its a flux copassitor!!!

[Azilythe]

This is more energy inefficient because both of the metals gallium and aluminum require electrolysis to be acquired. Which requires 3x more energy than if you were to simply use electrolysis on the water itself. But only if you were to have an impossible 100% efficiency, it would require more energy than it produces no matter what.

[endimion17]

no, this is not going to be used in power plants because hydrogen is not a SOURCE of energy. used in any chemical form, it can only be used for energy STORAGE.

hydrogen is almost exclusively found bonded with other stuff. you need to put in some energy to release it, and by joining it back together, you will NOT get extra energy because of the first law of thermodynamics.

this alloy might be used in mobile units just like any ordinary battery, but it will not be used as a source of energy.

[swomplode]

Is this a nuclear reactor?

[vmelkon]

I tried mixing Al and Hg. It doesn't mix!

[WaterFireSoup]

You can't just mix it together. You have to let it set abit. It will fuse together if you will. It takes some time. Patience

[vmelkon]

I even scratch the Al surface a LOT! I'll try again, this time in a test tube and leave it for weeks. I don't see how Hg is dangerous for planes. People exagerate.

[mingmingnak]

hg is mercury not gallium... gallium is dangerous because it will dissolve the metal that the plane is made of ...it can actually dissolve a hole through the plane

[raulitech]

does the gallium get consumed into an oxide too, if not can it be realistically and inexpensively removed to be used again?

[tnarwhale]

Was that a tooth in Mountain Dew?

[saltpeter08]

hahaha

[warriorsng]

fill up a balloon with hydrogen then, blow it up!

[KestrelK1]

This is easily one of the worst sciencey videos on YouTube. Nothing was said and the image was mostly out of focus. Please try again.

[flyingfish555]

What? Simple videos of cool things like this are what make youtube great, IMO. It's just a video showing a Ga-Al alloy reacting with water. What more is there to be said about it? Well, you can talk theory, but I'd rather just see it personally...

[Britainlockman]

is this as exothermic as some of the other reactions are?

[WaterFireSoup]

Indeed

[boxa888]

whats the product at the end of the reaction. AlO2 and gallium. is it a catalyst?? thanks for any info you can give me

[raulitech]

i think this alloy breaks down the aluminium oxide barrier on aluminium metal that prevents it reacting with oxygen in air or water. the alloy gives the aluminium a chance to react with the water to produce an aluminium oxide and hydrogen gas.

[sparks12001]

nice n64 podracer lol

[jmmatos23]

that solution looks really tasty! why dont u drink it?

[frizspin175]

does the solution heat up when the gallium is added?

[arxfatallis]

there is an even better way to generate hydrogen!

[H4X0R081]

Seems great, now we need to find a process to convert the aluminum oxide back into aluminum without using much energy, or else we'll eventually run low on aluminum.

[vmelkon]

The Al2O3 would go back to the company and reduced by electrolysis. Unfortunately, that process produces a LOT of CO2 because the anode is made of graphite. The best is lead-acid batteries since they are super cheap and there is plenty of lead for everyone, unlike gallium. Charge the Pb-acid batterie with hydro power or solar.

[webgrunt]

How does this work? Obviously, gallium and aluminum can't "produce" hydrogen, but if that solution is water, then I guess they are splitting the water into its constituent hydrogen and oxygen?

[WaterFireSoup]

Correct

[vmelkon]

It doesn't produce oxygen but aluminum oxide (Al2O3) instead. You can search for aluminum and gallium and water. Gallium makes it such that aluminum doesn't have it's thin Al2O3 coating so it reacts like hell. Al is actually a very reactive metal. Also, I think you can do this with mercury+Al as well.

[tomterahedrob]

how much does this alloy cost?how many cubic feet of hydrogen will say apound of this alloy generate? also during the Civil War hydrogen ewas made on site for balloons bysome method like this.

[spokehedz]

You should have lit the hydrogen gas at the end. Otherwise, it can just be a lump of calcium carbonate.

[qwertycorp]

While not considered toxic, the data about gallium is inconclusive. Some sources suggest that it may cause dermatitis from prolonged exposure; other tests have not caused a positive reaction. Like most metals, finely divided gallium loses its luster. Powdered gallium appears gray. When gallium is handled with bare hands, the extremely fine dispersion of liquid gallium droplets which results from wetting skin with the metal may appear as a gray skin stain.

[qwertycorp]

Unlike mercury, liquid gallium metal wets glass and skin, making it mechanically more difficult to handle (even though it is substantially less toxic and requires far fewer precautions).

[NiTrain00]

How many gallons of hydrogen can one get from an empty beer can?

[WaterFireSoup]

What do you mean by this?

[babot6]

hes an idiot

[NiTrain00]

Go see the article at msnbc-msn-com id 18700750 where they tell all about it.

[belgvr]

is gallium poison as mercury? can i swallow it?

[WaterFireSoup]

No retard you dont swallow it

[belgvr]

i'm curious about the poisoning of this shit...

and the retard is you mom that brought u to life...

[WaterFireSoup]

That is the most reatrded come back ever. If you wanted to know if its poisons just ask.

[nitrex]

Wow how come your making fun of his mom ?, His mom isent the one who made fun of you ?

[nitrex]

Its not as poisonous as mercury but its still toxic, The level of toxicity is low. Why swallow it ?, no one eats gallium.

[Aqlex]

That was cool. It seemed the camera had a little trouble focusing though.

[WaterFireSoup]

Yeah i dont have to good of a cam,era.Looking to upgrade

[Aqlex]

I think you could get some decent stuff on the internet for around $300.

[nitrex]

Gallium is a Unique Metal

[Callidus80]

How did you alloy your Gallium with Aluminum?

Cheers

[WaterFireSoup]

I first melted the Ga then let peice of Al sit in it.

[fatmeteor]

don't you need a license to sell gallium?

[WaterFireSoup]

No you do not

[nitrex]

Its not needed since the item he is selling is harmless. In ebay alot of peoples sell without license and its still legal.

[msdnvp]

dude can u make a long tub for the hydro and light it ?

[WaterFireSoup]

Why not try this? Annd then do it :-)

[nitrex]

Its possible but people mostly make discharge tubes.

[nitrex]

Nice great work. 5 Stars for you :).

[WaterFireSoup]

Thank you. Do you wana buy any Ga?

[Omnis2]

Star Wars podracer ftw.

[WaterFireSoup]

What do you mean?

[Omnis2]

The Nintendo 64 game cartridge behind the reaction vessel.

[WaterFireSoup]

Hah correct,Found it behind my bed