GB2484995A

GB2484995A - Making metal powder from a metal salt of an organic acid and reacting said powder with hydrogen

Info

Publication number: GB2484995A
Application number: GB1019362.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: William John Maurice Fitzgerald Collis; Jenny Darja Vinko
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-10-25
Filing date: 2010-11-16
Publication date: 2012-05-02
Also published as: GB201017903D0; GB201019362D0

Abstract

Metal powder is made by thermal decomposition of the metal salt of an organic acid, preferably mixed with a non-metallic material. The metal can be nickel, cobalt, iron or palladium. The salt can be oxalate, formate or acetate. Contaminants are removed using P2O5, SO3 or a metal, hydride, oxide, amide or hydroxide of a Group I or Group II metal. The resulting powder, optionally mixed with a non-metallic material or beryllium, can be reacted with hydrogen in a reactor. The reactor can comprise an insulated electrode used to monitor the emission of charged particles, its temperature and/or pressure be monitored by a computer and/or its valves and pumps be controlled by a computer.

Description

Further methods for optimizing anomalies in hydrogen loaded metals

Description

Background to the Invention

For over twenty years there have been substantiated claims of anomalous heat production from metals loaded with isotopic hydrogen. Initially it was speculated that such anomalous heat was due to nuclear fusion reactions of closely packed Deuterium nuclei in a Palladium lattice. However the absence of radiations expected from nuclear reactions precluded such an interpretation.

Prof. F. Piantelli later showed that Nickel loaded with natural hydrogen at high temperature was also able to produce anomalous heat [1] . However the scientific community in general tended to ignore this observation and continued to study more expensive Deuterium / Palladium systems in the hope of verifying cold nuclear fusion of Deuterium at close to room temperature. This expectation was never verified. In particular no study demonstrated that Deuterium is a fuel. It is unlikely that "cold nuclear fusion" is an explanation for anomalous heat production.

High temperature gas loading as a basis of energy production was confirmed independently by other groups [2] using accurate flow calorimetry on the Ni/H system. Nevertheless, this study and others demonstrated that significant operational parameter (s) remained unknown. In particular, the excess heat did not commence immediately but was delayed, variable and of limited magnitude.

In other words it was neither reproducible on demand nor controllable -a major shortcoming for scientific investigation and for commercial exploitation.

The detailed causes of irreproducibility remain unknown. The problem appeared to be that the metal surface failed to absorb hydrogen readily and instead required repeated cycles of cleansing at high temperature at high vacuum and then hydrogen [1, 5] . The effect of these cycles is the removal of surface contaminants including carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, fluorine, phosphorous, sulphur, chlorine etc. mainly as volatile hydrides. (These contaminants are readily identified by low resolution mass spectroscopy.) This vacuum cycling is neither a fast nor efficient way to clean the metal surface and remove impurities. n

-L -

Independently of these studies, research continued into the Palladium / Deuterium system and some success were achieved by Arata and Zhang [31 with Palladium black. The high surface area of the metal powder facilitated the absorption of isotopic hydrogen. This study, and many like it, used expensive Palladium and Deuterium, and low quality heat was produced at near room temperature.

References [1] S. Focardi, R. Habel, F. Piantelli: Anomalous heat production in Ni-H systems, Nuovo Cimento 107, pp 163-167, 1994 [2] Cammarota, C., Collis W., et al. A flow calorimeter study of the Ni/H system, SIF Conference Proceedings 64. 3rd Asti Workshop on Anomalies in Hydrogen / Deuterium Loaded Metals. Asti, Italy (1997), www.lenr-canr.org/acrobat/CammarotaGaflowcalor.pdf [3] Arata Y., Zhang Y. Solid-State Deuteriuin Nuclear Fusion Using Double structure Cathode, Proc. ICCF12 (2005), www.iscmns.org/iccf12/ArataY.pdf [4] Rossi A. Wa 2009125444 20091015 Method and apparatus for carrying out Nickel and hydrogen exothermal reactions [5] Piantelli F. Wa/2010/058288 Method for producing energy and apparatus therefor

Statement of Invention

Clean metal powders synthesized by the thermal decomposition of organic metal salts including Nickel Oxalate, Ni(COO)2, can be used in anomalous heat generators. Residual contaminants poisoning the heat generating process can be removed by chemical or physical means and / or by simply sweeping them away by ensuring a flow of hydrogen gas through the reactor. The effect is to improve output powers, reproducibility, and controllability of an as yet unknown source of thermal power. Details are given showing how secondary low level charged particle emission can be used to monitor reactor state and supply a weak neutron source.

Detailed Description

The basis of the present invention is to combine well known techniques of preparing pure fuels, particularly hydrogen gas and metal powders such that potential contaminants are either not present (unless added deliberately), or are removed by physical and / or chemical methods. This is a major improvement on the unreliable methods currently in the public domain -for example inefficacious attempts are made to clean metal samples using chromic acid [2] Finely divided metals react rapidly with hydrogen, but also with air. Accordingly this invention specifies a method to create metal powder which has never been exposed to air or to any electrolyte and consequently is not contaminated thereby. In the chemical industry, metal catalysts, particularly Nickel and cobalt can be synthesized from the thermal decomposition of their oxalates at about 350 degrees Celsius. There should be no difficulty achieving this thermal decomposition "in situ" because this is below the typical reactor operating temperature.

Ni(C00)2 --> Ni + 2C02 (la) Oxalate thermal decomposition Ni(C00)2 --> Ni0 + Co + CO2 (lI) Oxalate thermal decomposition Ni(COOH)2 --> Ni + 2C02 + H2 (2a) Formate thermal decomposition Ni(COOH)2 --> Ni + Co + C02+ H20 (2b) Formate thermal decomposition Other metal salts such as formate could be used, and may have the advantage of generating hydrogen on their thermal decomposition as shown in equation (2a) above. However it is likely that some undesirable Nickel carbonyl Ni(CO)4 could also be formed from reaction of Nickel metal and carbon monoxide CO which will tend to redistribute Nickel metal within the reactor. In theory CO can be formed from (ib) but this reaction is endothermic. Any traces of CO and carbonyls will eventually be removed by reduction with hydrogen.

One problem with thermal decomposition of metal salts is that the nano particles so formed tend to aggregate at the temperatures used. In order to limit such aggregation and thereby control nano particle size, this invention proposes to disperse the metal salt in some other non metallic material.

Because contamination can also have origin in the components of the heat generating reactor, it is useful to remove gaseous impurities even if the metal powder is clean. Fortunately, these impurities are volatile at the typical reactor operation temperatures. Contaminated hydrogen gas can be purified in several ways. Most simply, impurities can be simply swept away by allowing pressurized gas simply to flow through the system. In a refinement of this, hydrogen oan also be foroed through a hot Palladium foil to ensure purity. Alternatively, or additionally, given that impurities are volatile hydrides, most of them (not alkanes) oan be removed using chemical getters. Water and basic gasses such as ammonia can be absorbed on phosphorous pentoxide.

Acidic gasses such as HC1, H2S, HF, can be absorbed on group II oxides or hydrides such as CaO.

Advantageosly, IUPAC group I or II hydrides can be used to remove both acidic and alkaline gasses. The hydride can be created in situ by reacting the metal with hydrogen.

LiH + NH3 -* LiNH2 + H2 It is advantageous to filter industrial sources of hydrogen through a heated Palladium metal. In a further refinement of this idea, the hydrogen gas can be slowly re-circulated thought the Palladium by means of a pump. No gasses should diffuse through hot Palladium except hydrogen and consequently very pure hydrogen results.

The measurement of pressures and temperatures can be carried out by computer which may adjust any heaters, electro-valves and pumps to ensure optimal performance and safety. The reactor state can be communicated remotely using standard technology including the Internet.

Given that hydrogen loaded Nickel is known to emit unidentified charged particles as shown in Wilson Cloud Chamber studies, this invention proposes that Beryllium in intimate mixture with the Nickel can be used as a low level source of neutrons.

As the reaction chamber can be successfully operated also at low pressure, it can be used as an ionization chamber and consequently particle emission can be monitored in real time by insertion into the chamber an insulated electrode. This has the advantage that any charged particles do not need to pass through any window which The physical form and dimensions of the reaction chambers are not critical and are either obvious or already in the public domain.

Consequently no drawings are provided.

This is an environmentally-friendly invention which facilitates the production of energy without significant pollutants.

Claims

Claims 1. A method for creating metal powders with clean surfaces through the thermal decomposition of the metal salts of organic acids for use in anomalous heat generating reactors.
2. A method for producing anomalous heat by loading metal powders with isotopic hydrogen where the principal source of heat is not of nuclear origin.
3. The method according to any of the previous claims where the metals are Nickel, Cobalt, Iron, Palladium.
4. The method according to any of the previous claims where the organic acids are oxalic or formic or acetic.
5. The method according to any of the previous claims where the metal powder is synthesized directly in the reactor chamber.
6. A method according to any of the previous claims where the hydrogen gas, is maintained pure, by forcing hydrogen to flow through the anomalous heat generating reactor.
7. Any of the previous methods using chemical reagents to remove contaminants.
8. The method of claim 7 where the chemical reagent is or includes P205.
9. The method of claim 7 where the chemical reagent is or includes SO3
10. The method of claim 7 where the chemical reagent is or includes any IUPAC Group I or Group II metal, or hydride, or oxide or amide, or hydroxide.
11. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Lithium metal
12. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Sodium metal.
13. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Potassium metal
14. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Rubidium metal.
15. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Cesium metal
16. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Calcium metal.
17. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Strontium metal
18. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Barium metal.
19. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Lithium oxide
20. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Sodium oxide.
21. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Potassium oxide
22. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Rubidium oxide
23. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Cesium oxide.
24. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Calcium oxide
25. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Strontium oxide.
26. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Barium oxide
27. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Lithium hydride.
28. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Sodium hydride
29. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Potassium hydride.
30. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Rubidium hydride
31. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Cesium hydride.
32. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Calcium hydride
33. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Strontium hydride.
34. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Barium hydride.
35. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Lithium hydroxide
36. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Sodium hydroxide.
37. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Potassium hydroxide
38. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Rubidium hydroxide.
39. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Cesium hydroxide
40. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Calcium hydroxide.
41. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Strontium hydroxideS
42. The method of claim 10 where the chemical reagent is or includes Barium hydroxide.
43. Any of the previous methods where the metal powder is created or used in a dispersed form by intimately mixing it or its precursor salt with other non metallic materials.
44. Any of the previous methods where hydrogen is filtered by forcing it to flow through thin Palladium metal.
45. Any of the previous methods where the hydrogen re-circulates through a Palladium filter.
46. Any of the previous methods where the palladium filter is maintained at the appropriate temperature by the heat of the metal powder.
47. Any of the previous methods where beryllium is intimately mixed with the metal powder so the apparatus can be used as a low level neutron generator.
48. Any of the previous methods where an anomalous heat generating reactor used also as a low pressure ionization chamber and contains an insulated electrode used to monitor charged particle emission.
49. Any of the previous methods where the reactor temperatures are monitored by a computer.
50. Any of the previous methods where the reactor pressures are monitored by a computer.
51. Any of the previous methods where the reactor's valves are controlled by a computer.
52. Any of the previous methods where the reactor's pumps are controlled by a computer.
53. Any of the previous methods where the state of the reactor is communicated to a remote operating console or computer.
54. Any of the previous methods where remote communication of the reactor state takes place over the Internet.