Calcium Carbide

[SS MAYFLOAT]

I remember back in high school spending many hours at night coon hunting. We used a lamp that used calcium carbide to make acetylene gas to burn for light. Miners used these type for many years.

I priced some carbide. To my surprise, its relatively inexpensive. 10 lbs from one place was $77.50. $55 in which is HAZMAT and shipping fees. I wonder if an engine could be designed or converted to run on acetylene? I do know the stuff will burn super hot. Then questions on its emissions and safety would be a big concern. Alternative to petro???? Comments? (besides me being nuts )

 

[Wotknot]

Re: Calcium Carbide

Acetylene in a free state is extremely shock sensitive.....as bad as, if not more so than nitro glycerin. Acetylene cylinders as opposed to an oxygen cylinder is not hollow. An acetylene cylinder is filled with a very porous substance and some acetone to stablize the gas. Therefore, whether it could be adapted to the automotive industry would be a challenge at the very least.

 

[rwise]

Re: Calcium Carbide

how much gas would 10 lbs make?
how far would that propel a vehicle?
when I light a torch with just the gas on little black string looking stuff floats through the air, would this clog the exhaust?
I'll bet it would raise the price of carbide!
Also Acetylene cylinders are said to be unstable if stored on their side.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: Calcium Carbide

Calcium carbide is in a solid form. There wouldn't be any supply of gas in a cylinder, but pellets. The carbide is inert until water is added. When water is added a chemical reaction occurs releasing the acetylene gas.

A minors lamp if you haven't used or seen one is a very simple light. They have an upper chamber and a bottom chamber. The upper one holds water and the bottom one has the carbide in it. Between the two is a adjustment valve that can change the brightness of the light by increasing the amount of water that drips onto the carbide. The gas that is emitted in the bottom chamber is then sent through an orifice in which gets lit. Once lit, the air gas mixture will make for a super bright light. Anyone every using a torch knows that you can make the flame give off floaters (black soot) or adjust it where the flame gets bright. Like most flammable stuff, it all depends on air gas mixture.

This style and method of lighting was used before electric lights were added onto cars. Before the method of refining crude, Ford had experimented with using carbide. He didn't research much on it since gasoline was made available at the time more and less expensive. This accelerated his movement to mass production of his cars.

One of the seasoned citizens that is in his 90's asked me if I knew about carbide. He was surprised someone as young as me (50's) knew about the stuff. His dad worked for Ford and he passed his stories down to me. Really interesting stuff he had to say. That is why this subject made me curious to the idea.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: Calcium Carbide

The chemistry behind all this is old news, and in theory the use of acetylene as a gasoline substitute/alternative is as viable as propane, natural gas, hydrogen etc.
In practice, you need to some large scale evaluations of the overall energy balance of this as a potential energy source....energy in vs energy out; also, acetylene is pretty cantankerous stuff...I wouldn't put it in the same league as nitroglycerine..as someone did, but it has its challenges.
It's energy value is only on the order of 50-60% that of gasoline, so you are swimming upstream right out of the gate.

Still, China and some other countries in Asia use carbide as an industrial source of acetylene...as a building block in their chemical insustry and a fuel source. Not in the internal combustion engine though, as far as I know.

 

[Wotknot]

Re: Calcium Carbide

acetylene is pretty cantankerous stuff...I wouldn't put it in the same league as nitroglycerine

Then try this. Take an empty propane tank and and place it into the back of a pickup. Next transfill acetylene from an acetylene tank into it. Finally, hop into the truck and begin driving. Go across a set of railroad tracks or just for giggles, hit a pothole. I'll be sure to notify your next of kin.

A minors lamp if you haven't used or seen one is a very simple light. They have an upper chamber and a bottom chamber.

Yeah those are some real antiques now. Before they began using acetylene stored inside cylinders, welders used the ole "carbide generators" (antiques now, too) They served their purpose but really made a mess due to the fact you had to have a sludge pit to dispose of all the spent carbide.

Also Acetylene cylinders are said to be unstable if stored on their side.

Well yes and no. IF someone is determinded to use it lying down, you should at the very least prop the valve end up at a minimum of about a 15 degree angle. That keeps the acetone drained away from the valve preventing it from being blown up into your hoses and torch. Acetone in itself is some nasty stuff and will deteriate the inside of the hose, o-rings, seats, and diaphragms.

 

[beerfilter]

Re: Calcium Carbide

I am intimately familiar with carbide and acetylene gas , much to the dismay of my neighbors and the local constabulary ,lol .
Yeah , the 4th is an earth-shaking event around these parts ..

A small oxy-acetylene torch set up , some balloons , and , an apropriate fuse is far cheaper than the fireworks stand , and , will keep the officials and the seismologists hopping all weekend .

Could you run an IC engine on it ? Yes , you could .
Would it meet emissions requirements and CAFE standards ?
Possibly , but , the energy efficiency is far less than gasoline , and , it would take a lot of research and development to solve the emissions problems .
Gasoline is a known quanity . Acetylene is actually very "dirty" stuff , lots of other substances in it , and , is EXTREMELY flammable , and , explosive in a wide range of mixtures with oxygen , something like 12 -80% , compared to natural gas @ 5 - 15% IIRC .

 

[Adjuster]

Re: Calcium Carbide

LOL I have also been to a 4th party with acetylene bombs. I have never heard anything so loud before.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: Calcium Carbide

Then try this. Take an empty propane tank and and place it into the back of a pickup. Next transfill acetylene from an acetylene tank into it. Finally, hop into the truck and begin driving. Go across a set of railroad tracks or just for giggles, hit a pothole. I'll be sure to notify your next of kin.

If you are suggesting that doing something so incredibly stupid with acetylene is dangerous...I wouldn't disgree for a minute. That's why there are such strict procedures on handling it so as to render it a fairly safe process.
It is cantankerous stuff.

If you tried using that same level of recklessness with pure nitro, there would be a hole in the ground where the pickup, the propane tank, and the person trying to fill it used to be.

Pretty pointless discussion really because if you were that stupid with a 5 gallon can of gasoline or a propane BBQ you could punch your ticket to the "other side" just as quickly.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: Calcium Carbide

If oil was unavailable, I would think some one somewhere will think of a way to use carbide for an alternative. I only brought this topic up as my old buddy asked me about it and it brought back memories for him. Sorta heatbreaking thinking about people that old that has lost many of friends and family.

Sometimes something that can be a positive thing can be shot down so quick with "It can't be done". A lot of inventors have proved that line wrong. For each step in failure is one step towards a solution.

 

[rwise]

Re: Calcium Carbide

I would think using enuf Carbide and water would be to bulky to run very far. a few chunks in a light is one thing, enuf to run an engine is another.