With heat and common chemicals, the author turned ore into metal
Posted 12.18.2008 at 1:50 pm
19 Comments
Growing Metal Intense heat cracks a flowerpot, revealing liquid titanium inside. Normally the pot would be nested with sand inside a second one to trap the molten metal
Mike Walker
An iron crowbar costs about $8; one made of titanium, $80. Solid-titanium scissors start at $700, and don't even ask about the titanium socket wrench. Titanium must be a rare and precious substance, right?
Actually, as raw ore, titanium is 100 times as abundant as copper. Nearly all white paint is white because of the titanium dioxide found in the ore. Something like four million tons a year go into paint, sunscreen, toothpaste, even paper.
The high price of titanium comes not from the raw material but from the difficulty of turning that ore into wrenches and bike frames. At temperatures high enough to melt it, titanium exposed to air catches fire. So it has to be refined, forged, welded, and cast in a vacuum or under inert gas, an expensive process.
Yet I was able to make titanium using equipment I had lying around. I did it with thermite reduction, a process commonly used to weld train tracks. In an iron thermite reaction, iron oxide reacts with aluminum and comes out as liquid iron. I just swapped in titanium dioxide instead. But that reaction, in which titanium dioxide transfers its oxygen atoms to aluminum, doesn't release enough heat to melt the materials.
So I mixed in drywall plaster (calcium sulfate) and more aluminum powder. They react to create huge amounts of extra heat, enough to melt the titanium and allow it to pool at the bottom of the container. Adding ground fluorite powder makes the molten metals more fluid and protects the titanium from air as it cools.
I used clay flowerpots, as suggested by Gert Meyer, who developed this procedure. When nested with sand between them, they last just long enough to let the titanium cool into beads of solid metal.
Sadly, this is not really a practical way to make a lot of titanium, so don't get your hopes up about starting that $700 scissors business.
ACHTUNG!
Do not try this at home. This reaction is extremely energetic. Flaming molten metal can be thrown some distance from the pot and will ignite anything within reach.
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cool sci guy well it looks cool but the question is weather it is worth it, I'd like to see it done in a big pot then I might be more impressed (not to say that I'm not pretty impressed already)
another great gray matter keep it up.
Kaccount, read last sentence of article gain. This is NOT practical way. And it is not really scalable.
Now that looks like a LOT of fun!
jess
www.privacy.de.tc
Fun but not practical. Enjoyed the procedure.
How do you get titanium dioxide? Is it actually found in your "home"?
I'm wondering if the aluminum yielded would be useful for another Gray Matter in which he etches a cube of the metal with acid to reveal the crystals.
If the question is weather it is worth it, many people would like to see it done in a big pot then I might be more impressed http://menexis.com as all of us are pretty impressed right now
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When I read this, I found myself wondering if the aluminum yielded would be useful for another Gray Matter in which he etches a cube of the metal with acid to reveal the crystals - its worth thinking about.
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I hate to be repetitive, but where did the titanium dioxide come from?
I love videos like this, very well done and interesting too, and yes I did think of starting my own titanium scissors biz :)
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would this prosses work if you used soda cans and foil as the source of aluminum and white paint and toothpaste for the titanium?
I haven't used this. But according to what you say, I am a little scared by it. http://www.amerisleep.com/
John Green up there was angry at his keyboard at the time :). I did really think of that $700 scissor business after reading that. Maybe I'll even give it a try. Anyways just kidding around, that is really awesome you making titanium like that. I never knew it was so abundant as in paint etc. I believed it to be something like rare jewelry or something. Nice!
Bill David
(Ecommerce website design | www.urldreamer.com/Ecommerce-Website-Design)
This must be a work of creative minded genius. Loved reading it.
(www.pewters.net/Antique-Pewter|antiquepewter)
Loved it. Really didn't know titanium was so abundant. Maybe I just might look into starting that $700 scissor business :P.
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Great video! But where is the titanium oxide store?
Or the Aluminum powder also.
Chris R. Philadelphia PA