Nickel Foil?

[Ianebeggs]

I might have found a pretty cheap source for Nickel 200. The catch is, at .5mm it's foil that comes rolled. I'm wondering if Nickel is pliable enough to straighten out for a dry cell? I'm guessing that it might work with the end plates and bolts holding everything together. The spacing is critical I know, so before I buy anything, I wanted to run it across the forum to see if anyone knew.

Thanks

[BioFarmer93]

I might have found a pretty cheap source for Nickel 200. The catch is, at .5mm it's foil that comes rolled. I'm wondering if Nickel is pliable enough to straighten out for a dry cell? I'm guessing that it might work with the end plates and bolts holding everything together. The spacing is critical I know, so before I buy anything, I wanted to run it across the forum to see if anyone knew.

Thanks

Ian,
I just looked at 1/50th of an inch (0.5mm) on my engineering scale and yes, that is very thin.. But, I think that if the media blasting is done before the individual plates are cut from the roll, and if you can make the cuts and holes without mangling the sheet, and if you can figure a way to make the electrical connections to such thin material without damaging it, you will be fine. A lot of if's, I know but this is a path I have considered taking myself, as shim stock is the least expensive way to aquire nickel-200. Personaly I believe that if care is taken, it can be made to work.

[Ianebeggs]

Would I be much better off getting 1mm? Would it make that much difference? It will still be foil, rolled.

[Roland Jacques]

Your trodes need to have some thickness to them, but neutrals can be VERY thin.

I must admit i have been considering some experiments with this super thin stuff. I don't know if it is possible to frame these and then use them as neutrals. But it might be worth a try. :rolleyes:

http://www.tcpglobal.com/kustomshop/itemdetail.aspx?itemno=KUS+23K-BOOK

[H2OPWR]

I believe you will find that for end plates that thin stuff will kill performance. Your reactor will have very hot spots near the electrical connections and almost no production at the opposite side. I have quite a bit of experience with Nickel. It is very very soft. Even the thick stuff I was working with wanted to warp when media blasted. I don't believe you could blast foil at all. The blasting grit would quickly erode through it. It is my opinion that even a slight amount of unbalanced pressure in the reactor would warp the neutral plates so some were closer together than others and the losses in the end plates would make the reactor far less efficient than a stainless device. If you found a way to bond the Nickel Foil to copper plates with a good electrolitic glue than you may have something but the copper could never touch the electrolyte and the cost would go through the roof.

Larry

[Ianebeggs]

So what's the thinnest I could go and be effective? 1mm? I have been quoted $15/piece for 3mm x 100mm x 150mm (approx 4" x 6"). That sounds pretty good to me but 3mm seems too thick. Thinner than 3mm is the "foil" and it comes rolled. If the conductivity is good enough, .11" shouldn't be too thick, right?

I'm not the experimenter that I would like to be, yet. I need a reliable, non-toxic system that I don't have to tinker with too much. Nickel really seems like the way to go so if I can afford it, I'll do it. I just want to make sure I get the right size stuff.

Thanks for the help.

Ian

[H2OPWR]

I used 28 gauge Nickel 200. That was about as thin as I would want to work with personally. If the foil is cheap enough it would make a good experiment to see if it worked. As far as I know no one has tried it.

Larry

[Ianebeggs]

I'm a little wary of the really thin stuff actually. Bio is right, I'm sure I can't media blast it without destroying it. My question then becomes, is .1" too thick for this? I'm guessing that it's not because I would assume that the current will pass the nickel much easier than the electrolyte bath, almost regardless of thickness. I could be completely wrong but that's just my guess.

Does $15 for a .1" x 4" x 6" Nickel 200 plate sound reasonable?

[BioFarmer93]

I'm a little wary of the really thin stuff actually. Bio is right, I'm sure I can't media blast it without destroying it. My question then becomes, is .1" too thick for this? I'm guessing that it's not because I would assume that the current will pass the nickel much easier than the electrolyte bath, almost regardless of thickness. I could be completely wrong but that's just my guess.

Does $15 for a .1" x 4" x 6" Nickel 200 plate sound reasonable?

Ian,
Yes, the nickel is very conductive, especially when compared to stainless. And yes, .10" is a bit heavy but if it is what you can get, then there you go.. As for price, I don't know- I've never purchased any, but look at it this way, if you ever get rid of the reactor just take it apart and wipe off the plates and take them the the recycler... By then you should be able to get almost as much as you paid for them!

[myoldyourgold]

Does $15 for a .1" x 4" x 6" Nickel 200 plate sound reasonable?

Can you tell us where you get that price.

[Ianebeggs]

Okay, I've cleared up the confusion with the company I'm dealing with. Here's the latest quote for 25 plates approx 4x6":

3mmx100x150mm price: USD 16.5/plate (plate)
1mmx100x150mm Price: USD 15 /plate (foil, and it's not in stock)

The size is flexible and could be changed easily enough. I was just thinking a slightly rectangular shape to minimize the distance to travel for the gas. Shipping is going to be a killer though. I'm thinking about $25/lb or more. Now here's the interesting part. It's coming from China. I'm not sure about the quality but then again, we're not talking about kids toys either. I'm sure their requirements for these type of things are similar to ours. She mentioned specifically that a guy in Australia who had MMO Ti, replaced them with these and is much happier.

I didn't think about the recycling bit. I wouldn't have ever just thrown it away but coming close to full redemption price is a selling point with the wife. In fact, with the way inflation is going, it might be a real investment, kinda like gold.

I'm thinking we could get a bit of a discount if we wanted to pool our resources. I'd be happy to play the middle man and since I'm in Hawaii, it makes sense.