Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Glow powder activators.

White Yeti - 8-10-2011 at 13:36

Just a quick question. I read that additives in ZnS glow powder give the glow powders some pretty colours. Silver makes blue glow powder and manganese gives a red-orange glow. I was wondering if iron would activate ZnS glow powder. It's a transition metal just like silver, copper and manganese, so it seems like it would work...

What do you think?

Endimion17 - 8-10-2011 at 15:04

Moderator should join all of the "ZnS threads". There are at least 4 of them, maybe more.

On topic, I've tried that with silver and manganese, but no results if you just grind them all together. There were some glowing pieces, but they're not impressive. Copper gives green glow which is not only the brightest, but also the most easily picked up by our eyes.

[Edited on 8-10-2011 by Endimion17]

White Yeti - 8-10-2011 at 15:31

You have to understand that if I posted this on an existing thread, it wouldn't be completely relevant. So I decided that I would start another thread.

There is a variety of issues with ZnS; synthesis, purification, extraction, doping, painting etc... Maybe joining them is not the best idea in the world.

Chemistry Alchemist - 8-10-2011 at 18:52

i heard from some where when doing this reaction strongly heat it with calcium (cant remember what compound) its supposed to make it glow better or another one is adding copper to the mixture and strongly heat... when doing it, try keep it in a closed space, pretty sure if its crushed the dead bits mix with the working bits causing a bad glow... but whats through my experience

Endimion17 - 9-10-2011 at 05:38

Quote: Originally posted by White Yeti  
You have to understand that if I posted this on an existing thread, it wouldn't be completely relevant. So I decided that I would start another thread.

There is a variety of issues with ZnS; synthesis, purification, extraction, doping, painting etc... Maybe joining them is not the best idea in the world.


I remember opening the same thread, or continuing one older thread because I wanted to talk about these same things...

IrC - 10-10-2011 at 00:49

Silver is most often used for gamma radiation activation of ZnS. If you are trying to make good glow powders ZnS will always be a poor substitute for experimenting with Sr and Ca Aluminates. Especially if multiple colors and long glow times is your goal.

White Yeti - 10-10-2011 at 04:45

Quote: Originally posted by IrC  
Silver is most often used for gamma radiation activation of ZnS. If you are trying to make good glow powders ZnS will always be a poor substitute for experimenting with Sr and Ca Aluminates. Especially if multiple colors and long glow times is your goal.



I'm only getting started, I first want to know if the sample I made this weekend works. It better work because I risked life and lung trying to make it. I bubbled H2S through an aqueous solution of zinc acetate.

I don't have a blacklight at the moment, so I have to ask my friend if he is willing to shine a blacklight on my sample and confirm the results.

I could try to make strontium aluminate, but the procedure calls for pure chemicals and rare earth metals. These are a little out of my reach.

[Edited on 10-10-2011 by White Yeti]

IrC - 10-10-2011 at 09:54

If you can find a cheap UV LED flashlight such as is used for money testing it will work very well for testing a glow powder. One I found was only 3 dollars and charges up my glow powders very brightly. A few minutes in sunlight works but the UV LED is handy.

For small samples to test if your formula and material working techniques are on the right track this works well.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-UV-money-detector-light-LED-flashl...

This works better.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ultra-Violet-UV-12-LED-Flashlight-To...

This one is brighter but covers a smaller area.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/UltraFire-395-400nm-LED-3W-UV-WF-501...


This one kicks ass. I bought several one and three watt models but none of them charge my glow powders as well as the 51 LED model. I imagine simply because it is easier to see the glow if a larger sample is charged up. In any case the below is my favorite solid state glow tester. Not so hard on your pocketbook either.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/51-UV-395-nm-Ultra-Violet-LED-Blackl...

Since you can get online there must be a way for under four bucks on the money testers or under 20 for the really good ones, to obtain something along these lines.



[Edited on 10-10-2011 by IrC]

Vogelzang - 10-10-2011 at 14:58

Rare earth doped Strontium Aluminate
http://www.4shared.com/video/SwsjOVD5/Luminescent.html


[Edited on 10-10-2011 by Vogelzang]

AndersHoveland - 10-10-2011 at 17:04

I seem to remember someone in this forum discussing fusing boric oxide with calcium oxide, and using a little bismuth as the activator.


Also see this intrigueing thread. Perhaps someone can decipher the alchemy and be able to translate it into understandable chemical terms:
http://www.lost-academy.com/t4-the-glowing-white-philosophic...

Neil - 10-10-2011 at 17:59

@Anders - perhaps the modernised equation would be

Mad ravings + Hokium = White glower powder in a vial?


@ yeti
http://prola.aps.org/abstract/PR/v92/i5/p1135_1

Phys. Rev. 92, 1135–1139 (1953)Mechanism of Impurity Poisoning in the Luminescence of Zinc Sulfide Phosphors with Manganese Activator

IrC - 10-10-2011 at 21:26

More likely Boric Oxide was a flux. Strontium Nitrate is a good flux for glow powders, even lending the Strontium for Ca-Sr Aluminates. With some Eu and Gd you make a great long lasting one. I sent Fleaker a few of mine long ago and He seemed to like them. But illness got in the way and I have not messed with it for a few years. Still have pounds of all kinds of Lanthanides though. Maybe someday.

White Yeti - 12-10-2011 at 11:19

Thanks for the link Neil! I had no idea that iron would poison zinc sulfide phosphor. I'll stick to copper from now on then.