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07 November 2003

E-Bulletin Backscatter

Chemistry Corner

Sheldon,

I do like Norm's idea for making your own chemicals. Here are a few comments: Lye (sodium hydroxide) is still avaliable in hardware and grocery stores around where I live. Lye is still an effective drain cleaner and making soap is not a completely dead practice. A web search with the key words "soap making" will show that the making of specialty or "gourmet" soaps has become quite a craft hobby.

Recently I used some lye to make a test batch of biodiesel. See http://www.kelseyville.com/biodsl/#trans for a description. This is an interesting chemistry project that uses several techniques used in many chemical processes.

In one hardware store here I even found concentrated sulfuric acid being sold as a drain cleaner.

So far finding an inexpensive source for nitric acid has eluded me.

Jim Hannon

LABRats

Dear Shawn:

Thanks for starting up LabRats. There is a real need for basic science education for the young. Making the program similar to the Boy Scouts adds to science education the real answer to what I feel are some fundamental problems in current science education in lower schools. Your idea is the perfect answer. In New York I was told our Department of Environmental Conservation is willing to help us form a group at their Quogue Wildlife Refuge in Long Island. That's the Department's main environmental Center. If not holding courses there, they are willing to help us organize a program in New York.

Thanks again,

James Farr

Homebrew Spot Welders

Sheldon,

Here are a couple of web links to home built spot welders to supplement the bulletin article.

http://www.5bears.com/welder.htm

http://www.frii.com/~katana/spotweld.html

Jim Hannon