| Author | Message | ||
     Anonymous |
Instead of using the nickel platinum wire to make the electrodes, can I use electronic solder coils? | ||
| Andrew |
Unless they are platinum, no. Platinum is needed as a catalyst. Without it you would get electrolysis, but the gasses wouldn't recombine. | ||
| Anonymous |
Is silver a catalyst? | ||
| Simon Quellen Field (Sfield) |
Silver is a catalyst for some reactions, such as decomposing hydrogen peroxide to produce water and oxygen. However, it will not work in the fuel cell to convert hydrogen and oxygen into water and electricity. | ||
| deepayan kumar Unregistered guest Posted From: 221.134.168.216 |
as platinum is very expensive as a catalyst,so is there any alternative to it which can act as a catalyst? | ||
| Simon Quellen Field (Sfield) Senior Member Username: Sfield Post Number: 646 Registered: 12-2004 |
Palladium, Rhodium, Iridium... Platinum is best. If there was a cheap replacement, we wouldn't be using platinum. Nickel and stainless steel are mildly catalytic, but none of the people who have written me after trying it have had any success. We use the platinum fuel cell because it is easy for kids to get it to work. Commercial cells use more complicated technology such as proton exchange membranes. | ||
| Arthur Yip (Peregrineay) Junior Member Username: Peregrineay Post Number: 9 Registered: 4-2005 |
Proton-exchange-membranes also use platinum, but in microscopic levels for more surface area. There have been research at universities on high temperature fuel cells. With the high temperature and pressure involved, nickel-tin alloys were found to work as electrodes too. | ||
| Josh (Unregistered Guest) Unregistered guest Posted From: 72.235.129.42 |
So can Hydrogen Peroxide be split with a DC 12 volt 1000 MA transformer and the most pure silver you can find ? | ||
| Simon Quellen Field (Sfield) Senior Member Username: Sfield Post Number: 838 Registered: 12-2004 |
You don't need silver, pure or otherwise. Hydrogen Peroxide will electrolyse much like water will. | ||
| Arthur Yip (Peregrineay) Member Username: Peregrineay Post Number: 19 Registered: 4-2005 |
However, Josh, H2O2 will not produce hydrogen and oxygen at each end. The products of electrolysing hydrogen peroxide are water and oxygen. Why are you splitting hydrogen peroxide? Hydrogen gas can be safely released into the environment because it dissipates quickly. (Message edited by peregrineay on February 5, 2006) | ||
| Simon Quellen Field (Sfield) Senior Member Username: Sfield Post Number: 997 Registered: 12-2004 |
Actually, silver is a good catalyst to dissociate H2O2, without any need for electricity. The reaction can be vigorous enough to produce steam along with the oxygen. Arthur -- are you sure about the decomposition products under electrolysis, or is that an assumption? Even if you started with pure H2O2, after it released oxygen you would have water with current running through it. Are you certain there is no H2 produced? Maybe we should try the experiment. | ||
| Arthur Yip (Peregrineay) Member Username: Peregrineay Post Number: 20 Registered: 4-2005 |
I guess not, total products would be hydrogen and oxygen because you've got hydrolysis happening with the H2O2 solution. Thanks for clearing that up! But I still wonder: why split hydrogen peroxide? I guess Josh wants equal production of hydrogen and oxygen? |
