Horace Heffner
Wed, 16 Jul 2008 20:30:24 -0700
On Jul 16, 2008, at 7:15 PM, Robin van Spaandonk wrote:
In reply to Horace Heffner's message of Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:07:24 -0800:Hi, [snip]I think the Na and Cl should reunite in gas mode, because they have differing charges, and the hydration water released as water vapor/ steam.[snip]I suspect that microscopic droplets of salt water are being entrained, and it is this which is coloring the flame. So I suspect that there is no "gas mode".
Well, it is an open question as to whether there is a real flame, i.e. burning H2 + O2, or just recombination of the NaCl, or even just a simple HF arc. That's why it is important to try to collect the gas. Looking at the Kanzius videos I see an actual flame front, which means there might actually be hydrogen in a non-stoichiometric concentration which burns with atmospheric oxygen at the flame front. It also appears true the flame is a lot less stable later on, or when used with a wick, so it may become closer to stoichiometric as the process proceeds towards completion.
Best regards, Horace Heffner http://www.mtaonline.net/~hheffner/