Series Cell Stack Plate Preparation and Conditioning for the BB 100 Cell Box
©2002 - 2007 Bob Boyce.

At no time are the plates to be handled with bare hands. Use clean rubber gloves to handle the plates.

1. Plate Preparation

First, you must deeply crosshatch the plates in an X pattern. Sandblasting or using an orbital sander will NOT work the same. This sanding is typically done by hand or on a belt sander using 60 or 80 grit sandpaper.

Rinse the plates clean of particulate matter. Acids or other cleansing chemicals are never to be used on the plates. The only chemicals that should EVER touch these plates are sodium hydroxide and/or potassium hydroxide. Clean tap water (not city water though due to all the chlorine and other chemicals added) may be used to rinse, but distilled water only is to used for final rinse.

2. Cell Assembly

Assemble the plates into the series cell container. Mix up a dilute solution (5% to 10% by weight) of sodium hydroxide in distilled water. Pour this solution into the series cell container until the solution is just covering the plates totally.

3. Plate Cleansing

During this stage, we are operating in submerged plate condition, where the liquid level is maintained just over the plates. Applied voltage should be at least 2 volts per cell, but not over 2.5 volts per cell. ( Referring to the BB 100 Cell H2O Box, with 15v0 to 200volts added.) Run this cell stack at full power for several hours at a time, which can be 4 amps or more. As the cell stack runs, the boiling action will loosen particulate from the pores and surfaces of the metal. Be sure to do this in a well vented area. Shut down and pour this solution into a container. Rinse the cells well with distilled water. Filter the dilute solution through paper towels or coffee filters to remove particulate. Pour the dilute solution back in and repeat this cleansing process. You may have to rinse and repeat many times until the cells stop putting out particulate matter into the solution. Optionally, you can use new solution each time you cleanse, but be forewarned, you can go through a lot of solution just in this cleansing stage. When cleansing is finished (typically 3 days of cleansing), do a final rinse with clean distilled water.

3b. Plate Cleansing (12/14v H2O booster cells) For 7 plate cells, 13 plate, 14/7 cells , B3 cells, all H2O booster cells are cleansing at 12/13.8volts x 20 to 50 amps). Cleansing is run hard, but never over 120ºf, if it gets too hot shut it down and allow to cool. Run many hours at a time, but never get it too hot. We use a water pump and a 5" filter housing, filtering out all containments before the water enters the cell again, instead of the coffee filter and funnel procedure.

4. Plate Conditioning

Start off with a new batch of NaOH and distilled water. This is a slow ramp up of amperage procedure. Using the same concentration of solution as in cleansing, now fill the cell stack with dilute solution up to within 1/2" of the top of the plates. Do not overfill the cells. Apply about 2 volts per cell and allow the unit to run first at .5 amps. The cells may overflow, but this is ok for now. As water is consumed, the levels will drop. Once the cells stabilize with the liquid level at the plate tops or just below, monitor current draw. Start with .5 amps for 3 t 4 hours, then .75 amps, then 1 am, do in 2 to 5 hours intervals. The longer an slower you go the better the catalytic layer will build up on the surface of the stainless. The conditioning phase takes anywhere from 2 to 3 days to a week. Once Bob conditioned a cell for one month, it was the most efficient cell he made. Add distilled water to just replace what is consumed. If the solution turns color or skims over with crud, the cell stack needs more cleansing stages. Do not allow the cells to overfill and overflow at this point. After 2 to 3 days of run time, pour out the diluted solution and rinse well with distilled water.

5. Cell Operation

Mix up a nearly full strength solution of sodium hydroxide, NaOH

Mode of operation determines operational voltage and fill level. For straight DC catalytic operation, about 2 volts per cell or less is required, and fill level will be to within 1" of the plate tops. For resonance operation, about 1.5 volts per cell is required, and fill level is only about 50% to make room for the highly reactive gas production volume.

6. Troubleshooting

a. Abnormally low current is caused by improper plate preparation or severe contamination. Disassemble the unit and start over again from plate preparation.

b. Abnormally high current is caused by high leakages between cells. This will require re-building or re-sealing of the cell container.

c. If current starts higher then drops off, this means that the plates are contaminated. Disassemble the unit and start over again from plate preparation.

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