Theory & Notes on Making Colloidal Silver

By Ken Adachi
http://educate-yourself.org/cs/csarticle5.shtml

Tiny particles of pure silver are made to deposit into water by simple electrolysis. Two silver wire electrodes, placed in a glass of water, are attached to the positive and negative terminals of a source of Direct Current (DC) electricity.

For our colloidal silver generator, square 9 volt batteries provide the easiest source of DC current. We’ll be using three 9 volt batteries hooked up in series. This means that the positive terminal of one battery is hooked up to the negative terminal of the next battery, etc., so that the individual voltage of each battery is added to the next battery. The sum effect being the total of all the battery voltages added together. Three 9 volt batteries will give us a working voltage of 27 volts. This is very near the ideal voltage of 30 volts used for making colloidal silver, that Peter Lindemann mentions in his recent article, A Closer Look At Colloidal Silver. After the three batteries are hooked up in series, we’re still left with an unattached negative terminal on the first battery and an unattached positive terminal on the third battery. We’ll attach a silver electrode to each of these terminals.

The negative (-) terminal attached to the silver electrode provides an excess of electrons. Those electrons would like to get to the positive (+) terminal electrode since it has a deficit of electrons. Everything in Nature wants to balance out and exist in a state of equilibrium, including electrons. The water solution that the electrodes are placed in provide a path through which some of those electrons can get back to the positive terminal. While electrons are flowing through the water solution from the negative silver electrode to the positive silver electrode, other things are happening.

Silver atoms have a net positive charge, or plus valence. As the electrons which left the negative silver electrode arrive at the positive silver electrode (also called the anode, since it receives electrons), they “push off” clusters of silver atoms, who don’t appreciate being ‘crowded’ by these extra electrons. These silver atoms go into the water solution and remain suspended there. Since these atoms have a net positive charge, they repel each other as best they can and create a colloid solution. A small number of these silver atoms are also attracted to, and cluster around, the negative silver electrode as well. In addition, because of the electron movement through the water, some of the water molecules (H2O) will break down-thereby releasing hydrogen and oxygen atoms. Most of the released hydrogen will bubble up out of the water as hydrogen gas.

Some of the oxygen will form oxygen gas (O2) and bubble out, some will go into solution, and some oxygen atoms will combine with the silver atoms and form a silver oxide (2AgO4) on the positive silver electrode. This will blacken the positive silver electrode. This undesirable buildup of silver oxide reduces the flow of silver atoms into the solution. In addition, if the buildup of silver oxide is allowed to go on too long, the excess oxide will break off from the electrode and drop to the bottom of your solution, contaminating it. The oxide buildup can be controlled by either periodically cleaning the electrodes or reversing the electrical polarity to the electrodes., thus reversing the role of which silver electrode acts as the anode.

By following the technique outlined next, we’ll be able to produce very small sized particles of silver (on the order of .001-.005 microns) which will turn the solution a golden yellow. These ideal sized particles provide the greatest biological benefit as well. Larger sized particles will turn the solution different colors. There is a precaution, however, that you must observe. If you don’t monitor the reaction, the current flow will rise to excessive levels, and you’ll wind up with a murky grey/black solution that usually has puddles of clumped silver floating at the top. If that happens, just throw it out and start over again, after cleaning off the electrodes and the glass.

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