Water Absorbing Polymer

At the bottom of the cup is half a teaspoon of Sodium Polyacrylate, a polymer which can absorb up to 1,000 times its weight in water. Salt, however, destroys its water retaining capabilities.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• sodium
• polyacrylate
• ASAP
• diaper
• absorb
• water
• polymer
• salt
• Harry
• Lee
• LeeHSL

[amgprs]

bit dark but nice. What do you think is it any good for using outside in the garden to pick up and store that little rain we have? Is there a way it realeses water other than with salt? Is salting it and making it lose its water holding capability reversible?

[LeeHSL]

Sodium polyacrylate is already being used to save water in the garden :) "Jelly Crystals" allows soil to retain moisture over a long period of time, so you don't need to water the plants very often. Also, as far as I know, salt completely destroys its water holding capability, and is irreversible.

[amgprs]

Thank you for your reply. I cut open some nappies and started making tests with the crystals on plants both inside the house and outside in the garden. Inside it works great. Outside we have over 37 C so water evaporates pretty quick. I still have to water every day, but it does have some positive effect. The soil remains moist almost whole day long where I used it.

[LeeHSL]

Glad this video was of some help to somebody! :P If you are getting the powder from diapers, be sure to separate it from the cotton, so you aren't putting cotton in your dirt. Shaking the contents in a plastic bag and collecting the powder at the bottom helps. Water gel crystals are also available at hardware and gardening stores, but don't come cheap :)

[LeeHSL]

*sigh* I know, I did it in my kitchen, and I don't have a proper video camera. I'll redo it outside, please wait a few days for the new (hopefully brighter) version.

[kangnang777]

u could find dat stuff in dipers

[neeterxxi]

Is there anyway to dehydrate the powder so it can be used again? If this was reusable, that would be really helpful.

[Booshibonton]

and this is what our technology has brought us? let's make use of it :P

[demivselena]

@enjoistik the cotton stuff is what u need just pour over some water and there u have it! ;) hope this helped

[davmth1]

this is how girls go 2 bathroom... cuz they dont rly...

[BlenderFreak777]

Why does salt melt this stuff...i was so mad when i found this out, i wanted to make a conductive jelly, but it just turned runny.

[theamazingplant2]

@neeterxxi simply let it dry out

[thatguril21]

also called insta-snow.....

[antiqueeagle62]

hydrophilic polymer

[Karvenate]

Yah but it is not enough!

[enjoistik]

please tell me how to get that stuff out of a diaper!!

i cut one open and just found some cotton stuff

[AnnagoneBANNANAS]

yeah. haha. i did an experiment with that stuff in the 5th grade. lol its fun to squish.