Re: AboutSalts

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Jolyon Vater Cox by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <jolyon-at-vatercox.freeserve.co.uk>

Chemistry text books say calcium metal burns with a brick-red flame and
flame tests
on calcium salts also give this colour. Insoluble, refractory calcium
compounds eg.
calcium carbonate (limestone), oxide (quicklime), sulphate (gypsum) or
phosphate
(apatite) are insufficiently volatile to change the flame colour unless they
are
pre-treated to convert them to more volatile forms such as the nitrate or
chloride eg. to
test limestone you would first need to moisten a clean nichrome wire with
nitric or
hydrochloric acid before dipping it into the test sample before introducing
to the
flame.

The principle of emission in flame test is same as with with neon tube-
the colour is not caused by the metal vapour "burning" as such  but by
calcium ions
losing energy as photons whenever an electron in an "excited" state falls
back to a
less-excited state.

The atomic absorption spectrometer DOES in fact contain an emission source
-the "hollow-cathode lamp"- which provides the spectrographic standard
against
which the measurement is taken.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
To: <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
Sent: Sunday, July 21, 2002 8:12 PM
Subject: Re: AboutSalts


> Original poster: "rheidlebaugh by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>"
<rheidlebaugh-at-zialink-dot-com>
>
> Chris:   No!   a gas chromatigraph chart will NOT give you a color list of
> elenents. An EMMISION SPECTROGRAPH chart will have that. A list of
pyrotech
> color chemicals is best as it is choeen to provide colors as seen by the
> eye. At low temprature water soluble salts produce colored light when
> excited by electrical excitation in just the same way that UV light
produces
> colored light with certain elements. Calcium and magnesium (epson salt)
both
> produce white light not colored light. The AA Spectrograph and the GC use
> light absorbed by the elements and compounds being tested not the light
> emmited by elements so charts made for them will not give you light colors
> emitted.
>    Robert  H
>
> > From: "Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
> > Date: Sat, 20 Jul 2002 12:46:23 -0600
> > To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
> > Subject: AboutSalts
> > Resent-From: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
> > Resent-Date: Sat, 20 Jul 2002 13:05:03 -0600
> >
> > Original poster: "cd by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>"
> > <vbprg1-at-hotmail-dot-com>
> >
> > A question about salts
> >
> > I have some epsom salt. I think its mgso4
> > my question is will this work for producing colored arcs?
> > I know mg makes very bright/hot flame when burnt.
> > Im guessing it may not be safe to use...
> >
> > Also I am wondering what is the scientific explanation of this effect...
> > my guess is
> > The very high voltage discharges are vaporizing the wet salt. The vapors
> > then burn to create what ever color the burning elements in the salt
> > produce.
> > I am wondering if the vaporization is due to heat (my coil seems to
produce
> > very little to no heat, by the time I unplug and discharge/ground caps
no
> > heat is detectable on any component), or if there is some type of
> > Ionic(ionic/covalent? been ahwile ) bond break down in the salts. Is
there a
> > separation of the salts elements from HV electrical Ionization into
their
> > flamable components? If we used table salt as an example does the sodium
> > seperate from the chlorine? Is the orange from sodium burning?
> > Or am I way off here.....?
> >
> > Is there a color chart posted on the net somewhere?
> > Like a color key for a gas chromatigraph?
> > Does a gas chromatigraph use an electrical charge to vaporize elements
that
> > only burn at high temperatures?
> >
> > Chris Dowdy
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>
>