Originally Posted by
djbuggybee
John Bedini said to use straight aluminium sulphate and distilled water; Al2(SO4)3 + 12H2O.
As I understand it, aluminium itself in this configureation is not soluable in water, and the water simply electrolysies in preference to alumium sulphate, so the aluminum sulphate does not precipitate out;, So is it electro-plating onto one of the lead electrodes (Lead/Lead oxide)? Which one does it plate onto, the cathode (Reduction)?
Aluminum Sulfate is a salt, soluble in water, matter of fact it's made by mixing Aluminum Hydroxide with Water and Sulfuric Acid.
Aluminum Sulfate dissolves in the water the solution will contain positive aluminum ions, and negative sulphate ions. Now remember you also have hydroxide, which is really Lye. So once electricity is applied and the circuit is completed, the aluminum oxidizes and small amounts will plate out on the lead cathodes. We are not talking about large amounts, and we are not talking about precipitating aluminum, we are talking about plating small amounts of aluminum oxide on lead cathodes.
Now all it takes is to break the circuit, and the aluminum oxide easily comes off, most will just fall off and if not any jostling will help it fall off. As Aluminum is removed from the electrolyte the sulphate ion is liberated and converts back into sulfuric acid. Applying the electrical current over and over and stopping between will eventually remove most of the Aluminum and liberate most of the sulphate ions.
Battery acid is really just weak sulfuric acid, nothing more. So all you are doing is liberating the sulphate ions, creating sulfuric acid in the process.
But you are right in that no Aluminum in metal form is being plated out, that would take an entirely different process, using a molten electrolyte process.
It's far easier just to drive down to your local
auto parts store and purchase new battery acid (sulfuric acid) instead of attempting to use this process to make a weaker, polluted version of sulfuric acid.
When I see "Aluminum Sulphate" I see it as it's component parts, aluminum, sulfuric acid, sodium hydroxide, etc. This makes it easier to understand how it can be broke down again into it's component parts. I know I can get sulfuric acid again, and I know sulfuric acid is used as an electrolyte for batter acid in lead/acid batteries, from that point it's not difficult to understand why these "converted" batteries work. What I have a difficult time understanding instead is how in the world so many amateur chemists get sucked into believing that somehow, a better battery is made by so called "converting" acid/lead to alum/lead. That makes no sense to me. I can understand someone with no background in chemistry at all, but not anyone with a chemistry background.
Scott
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