In reply to AlanG's message of Mon, 19 Jun 2017 23:22:32 +0000: Hi Alan, You might also try with Cu instead of silver, if your budget extends that far. Since the creation of the powders takes some time, you could do both in parallel?
>Nickel and Silver are mutually insoluble (or only with great difficulty) >as has been pointed out. Following Jones' original post, I'm preparing a >simple experiment to test "mechanical alloying". I will ball-mill ~2 um >powders of the two metals for several hundred hours, using 3/8" tungsten >carbide balls for media. SEM/EDS will be used to examine the resulting >mixture. > >If the results appear to be successful, a further test will be done by >exposing the amalgam to flowing hydrogen at various temperatures, >looking for radiation as a signature of nuclear activity. Advice and >suggestions for this test are welcome. > >AlanG > >On 6/19/2017 7:46 PM, [email protected] wrote: >> >> Jones and Bob >> >> Bob is correct rfegarding terminology for alloys. An alloy has an >> ionic bond between metallic nuclei as I understand. But those bonds >> may only occur at grain boundaries with individual grains of the >> quasi-alloy being in bulk one or the other metallic element. >> >> However the smaller the grains, the more ionic bi-metallic alloy you get. >> >> With this concept in mind starting a manufacturing process for Ni-Ag >> alloy would use nano sized metallic particles and proiceed to obtain >> a homogeneous mixture of the two metals, evacuate the mixture and hot >> press the mixture with various sintering times to allow a variety of >> heats and LENR properties. >> >> Homogeneous mixing is the key. Cryogenic conditions using a liquid >> gas such as nitrogen or helium may help avoid clumping of like metal >> particles during mixing. Jones suggestion of a rapid ball milling >> procedure (with an inert cryogenic fluid) may work well. Maybe merely >> a tumbling mixing would work. However, I would guess that ball >> milling would further attrite the Ni and or Ag nano-particles and >> assure good mixing. >> >> The N or helium should coat each particle with atoms to avoid >> clumping. When the fluid mixture is poured in to a hot press mold >> evacuated and hot pressed, the individual Ni and Ag particles should >> remain well mixed as the N gas (or other gas) evaporates from its >> position around reach individual particle. Boundary exchange of >> particle nuclei may then occur at temperature. >> >> An interesting alternative would be to use liquid H with precautions >> to handle a reaction should LENR conditions be right. This may result >> in a bi-metallic hydride ripe for LENR with correct resonant >> stimulation and ambient magnetic conditions. >> >> SAFETY IS A CRITICAL CONSIDERATION IMHO. >> >> Bob Cook >> >> Sent from Mail <https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986> for >> Windows 10 >> >> *From: *Bob Higgins <mailto:[email protected]> >> *Sent: *Monday, June 19, 2017 7:41 AM >> *To: *[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> >> *Subject: *[Vo]:"Type A nickel" ? >> >> Jones, As you have discussed, the Type A Pd that appears to be LENR >> active is an actual alloy. In an alloy you expect an atomic level >> crystal lattice alteration - the lattice constants of the alloy are >> uniform and different than with Pd alone. However, what you describe >> as a "mechanical alloy" is unlikely to be anything other than an >> admixture of grains of Ag with grains of Ni. An "alloy" and a >> "mechanical alloy" are two vastly different things. It is sort of >> like the nickel silver not having any silver - the mechanical alloy >> has no alloy. >> >> True alloying would alter the lattice constants by creating a new >> crystal structure incorporating the alloy metal at the basic atomic >> crystallographic level; hopefully in a way that allows more H to enter >> the lattice. Also, forming a true alloy would potentially lower the >> vacancy formation energy of the Ni; which, in some theories would >> raise the LENR rate. OTOH, if a "mechanical alloy" is formed, the >> only difference achieved will be creation of dirty grain boundaries >> between solid grains of Ni and Ag. It is possible that effects could >> occur at such grain boundaries, so it can't hurt to try. It is just >> hard to envision what would promote LENR by creating a "mechanical alloy". >> >> On Sun, Jun 18, 2017 at 6:10 PM, Jones Beene <[email protected] >> <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: >> >> >> One further detail about the possible advantage of using silver >> alloyed with nickel in LENR, instead of pure nickel - with >> hydrogen as the gaseous reactant, instead of deuterium. >> >> If this were to work for LENR gain, the identity of the nuclear >> reaction is not the same. Obviously, such an alloy as Ni-Ag >> (assuming it is made via mechanical alloying)... would be unlikely >> to produce helium from fusion, as happens in Pd-D... since there >> is no deuterium (although a alpha emission following proton >> nuclear tunneling is not ruled out.) But there is an ideal >> alternative reaction. >> >> First - a detail which you may not be aware of is the composition >> of control rods in nuclear fission reactors going back 50 years. >> As it turns out - silver has been commonly used as an alloy in >> control rods, along with boron. Part of the explanation is here >> but there is more to it than meets the eye. Silver is like a >> magnet for neutrons more so than any other element across the >> entire spectrum. >> >> http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2011/ph241/grayson1/ >> >> In short, silver has a high cross section for neutrons of all >> energies whereas boron and cadmium and other absorbents generally >> work with neutrons of a narrow energy range. Silver wants them all >> and this could imply more, if Ag works with nickel. >> >> But where are the neutrons to being with? - oops - there are none, >> or so it seems. >> >> But lets broaden this suggestion to include Holmlid's results. >> Holmlid shows that UDH can be made simply by flowing hydrogen over >> a catalyst. If so then we could end up with a neutron substitute, >> which is the so-called "quasi-neutron". >> >> This presumed particle is larger than a neutron, but otherwise >> could be a substitute. This quasi-neutron could also be what Widom >> and Larsen are claiming as an active particle of LENR. >> >> The crux of the issue is this. Silver has a high cross-section for >> neutrons of all energies and the quasi neutron could also favor >> silver - but this is not proved. If it happens, the energy of the >> gamma should be less, since the mass-energy of UDH is less. Also >> the half-life following activation is very short and there is >> little or no residual radioactivity. >> >> Jones >> >> Much has been said about Type A palladium and its special >> reactivity with hydrogen, some of which is due to the alloy >> being one fourth silver. Since pure palladium doesn't work as >> well, it might be said that most of the reactivity seen in >> cold fusion has been due to the special properties of the >> alloy, which is a 3:1 ratio (75% Pd 25% Ag). >> >> In many ways, nickel can be considered to be a surrogate of >> palladium. Nickel resides directly under Pd in the Periodic >> table, and has an identical valence electron structure. This >> leads one to wonder about an alloy of nickel and silver, based >> on transposing the results of cold fusion to protium, instead >> of deuterium. >> >> Unfortunately, in the historical context - and going back 300 >> years in metallurgy, the term "nickel silver" refers to a well >> known alloy of copper, nickel and zinc which contains zero >> silver. Essentially, nickel silver is a brass alloy that looks >> like much like the more expensive silver and is much stronger >> and more durable - making it a great substitute for most >> common uses. >> >> This old alloy was created to serve exactly the same purpose >> as silver for attractive shinny flatware but not as >> prohibitively expensive - about 20 times less expensive per >> unit of weight than silver. This semantic confusion did not >> lead to neglect of finding a real alloy of nickel and silver >> since these two metals are indeed mutually insoluble. They do >> not mix. That kind of insolubility is somewhat unusual in >> itself for metals so similar - but basically the two metals do >> NOT alloy by melting together as is commonly done. >> >> However, this proposed LENR alloy which I will call "Type A >> Nickel" in the 3:1 ratio has been studied in another context - >> and found to have exceptional properties for water splitting. >> To accomplish this they had to go to extraordinary lengths to >> achieve an alloy. There are very few papers on this because of >> the lack of a commercial alloy which can be purchased. >> >> BUT ... there is a strong suspicion that "Type A Nickel" could >> be special for replacing pure nickel in LENR. This assumes >> that silver is reactive in its own right for a nuclear >> reaction, such as in the protonation reaction Robin mentioned >> in another thread. >> >> BTW - In the paper "Nickelsilver alloy electrocatalysts for >> hydrogen evolution and oxidation in an alkaline electrolyte" >> Tang and others showed that the NiAg alloy is an excellent >> catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction. Based on the >> free energy of adsorbed hydrogen, theory predicts that alloys >> of nickel and silver are very active for these type of hydride >> reactions and they are. The alloy is just hard to make or >> else you would have heard about it before now. >> >> Basically - the Type A Nickel could work better for NiH >> reactions than nickel, since it is twice as reactive for water >> splitting (as defined in their test) which needs to be proven >> out. This testing has been neglected in the past - due to the >> lack of electrodes... for which there is a work-around. That >> is what I propose to add: an easy work around at least for >> some experiments. >> >> My suggestion to anyone contemplating a gas phase reaction is >> to try mixing nickel-black and silver-black in a high speed >> ball mill, in a ratio of 3:1 --- where mechanical alloying is >> expected. Then, use this composite powder instead of nickel. >> Mechanical alloying is special in its own way and could add >> something akin to surface treatment. >> >> Electrolysis reactions would be more difficult to accomplish >> with powder - and since this proposed work-around for >> silver/nickel insolubility involves metal powders and >> mechanical alloying a different geometry would be needed for >> the cell. However, powder has been used for electrolysis >> electrodes before (as a colloid) - and it could be worth the >> effort. >> >> >> >> >> <http://www.avg.com/email-signature?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campaign=sig-email&utm_content=emailclient> >> >> Virus-free. www.avg.com >> <http://www.avg.com/email-signature?utm_medium=email&utm_source=link&utm_campaign=sig-email&utm_content=emailclient> >> >> >> >> <#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2> Regards, Robin van Spaandonk http://rvanspaa.freehostia.com/project.html
