Recent content by HCB

I've continued to experiment. DC etching (actually removing metal) has been a little successful. Mixing 30% vinegar, NaCl, and citric acid, running around 30Vdc open-circuit, pushing about 0.7A, I have been able to quickly tarnish and then etch into a SS test outlet faceplate. Naturally, SS...

I did what I've done thousands of times over 23 years. I checked myself as I have in the past. I missed a detail. Something was flammable and within reach. I'm still not entirely sure what it was. But over $100k of not-insured contents and my favorite cat died. Things happened quickly...

Tom, thank you for your reply. What you're describing with the carbon rod sounds like it will effectively make a little lightning storm across the surface of the metal: very small, short arcs. That might work but I would seem similar, minus the air-gap arcing, to using an electrolyte in...

First: this post is regarding the marking of stainless steel with an electrochemical process which involves one or more electrolytes in solution. I felt this area of the site sounded like an appropriate place to post this as it involves both materials and chemistry. My apologies if this isn't...

Phyzguy, thank you for the reply. I understand what you're saying. This is very useful to know as I had envisioned a test setup where I had hoped that the charges might be durable for a while (as in as much as several minutes). It sounds like there will be several variables in play so...

Jbriggs444, thank you for the reply. DaveE had made a comment about the capacitance and change due to the distance between the pieces being charged. I thought, and you've stated, that the capacitance (ratio to potential voltage) increases as the pieces get closer to one another. I used a...

DaveE, thank you for your reply and information. I sort of understand what you're saying about the capacitance being a function of their geometry. I was confused so I started questioning my understanding of the word "capacitance". I looked that up...my understanding of the term capacitance...

Drakkith, thank you for the reply and information. I understand what you've stated about the power supply and read that it's basically acting as an electron pump: pull from this side and push to that side. --HC

Hello, all. First, I want to apologize if this is not the correct forum or area of the forum for this question. Please direct me if I should be posting this somewhere else. I have some questions regarding what I believe is best described as the "theory" of electrical capacitance. As my...

I'm no expert but I have been scuba diving and using lift bags for recovery for 13 years so I feel I can add some useful information here in response to your question. "Lift" (buoyancy) is primarily a function of displacement. "Pure" water weighs about 8 pounds per gallon, so for every 1...