Electric Onion!

[YT2095]

ok, just to cheer me up a bit and maybe some of you, I`ve managed to get my FTP prog working again, and thought I might share one of my past experiments with you all just for a giggle

 

here`s the setup:

http://www.yt2095.net/experiments/picon1.JPG

 

well it blew an 8 amp fuse within 2 seconds, so I thought I`de give the spark a hand and do it manualy;

http://www.yt2095.net/experiments/picon2.JPG

 

looking good, but it getts better!

http://www.yt2095.net/experiments/picon3.JPG

 

pretty sweet looking Arc now! here`s a closeup and look at the yellow coloration caused by the Sodium Ions

http://www.yt2095.net/experiments/picon4.JPG

 

here`s the weird part though!!!!

http://www.yt2095.net/experiments/picon5.JPG

 

note the distinct lack of charing? it`s quite literaly been Vaporised! kinda looks like a mouse hase been eating it, you can see where the one electrode had been due to the colored metal salts deposited in the onion core (they will be Chlorides, and Acetates)

 

please DONT do any of this at home! other than being grossly unfair to pickled vegatables, you`de probably kill yourself too as these voltages and power levels are instantly fatal!

[blike]

dude, thats pretty sweet!

[Dave]

nice.

 

if somewhat of a waste of a very nice pickled onion.

[gene]

Heh, tHat is So Cool...

But i wanna ask something...

Can onions conduct electricity? How does electricity pass through it? By water? Or what?

Oh i remeber something.... I went for a science exhibition and i was surprise to see that an apple could light up the bulb whereby two wires with points were plugged into the appl and connected to the light bulb. Well, i could get the person to explain to me beacause she could not speak english very well... I could understand what she was saying... Language barrier. This experiment reminds me of this apple thing... Maybe there is some kinda of relation?

[YT2095]

yes they most certainly can, as demonstrated in the pics.

In fact they conduct particularly well, hence I blew an 8 amp fuse across one LOL.

this is primarily if not solely due to the water content with dissolved ions, namely the Salt and the Vinigar (an acid).

despite popular beleif water alone isn`t all that good a conductor of elecricity, certainly at very high voltages the losses due to resistance in the water are negligable and will certainly harm you if you mess about with it (maybe even kill you), but of course if you dissolve ionic materials in the water at sufficient concentration, the water may as well be a peice of metal for conduction!

 

the experiment you saw, is an example of a simple battery, typicaly the metals used are Copper and Zinc then stuck into a lemon, look up on Google about a man called Voltaire, and the 1`st battery ever made