2150 A Battery That Lasts Forever - The Zamboni Pile

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[@colfaxschuyler3675]

The Zamboni Pile is a tragic hockey traffic incident that happens when they're in a hurry between games, and they let more than three Zambonis on the ice at once.

[@dangeary2134]

Must have happened in Canada!

[@colfaxschuyler3675]

@@dangeary2134 Total white-out conditions! Poutine and Canadian bacon strewn everywhere.

[@travismiller5548]

One player loses a contact, suddenly everyone is crawling around looking for it and BAM!

[@michaelabraham9177]

Makes sense, is free beer from concessions also involved.

[@narmale]

im dead xD LOLOLOLOLOL

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

The fact that the piles that runs the bells is sealed in sulfur, may be the reason the piles work for so long, if the sulfur is able to replenish the electrolyte slowly over time, it could remain running longer than expected!

[@deltab9768]

I did a back of the envelope calculation. If the battery truly outputs 1 nano-ampere at 2000 volts, then it has so far delivered about 3 watt hours of energy. The amazing thing about the design is not how much energy it can put out. It’s that it’s able to keep macroscopic motion going with so little power input!

[@jrobmccoy]

Not just that, but the virtually 0 self discharge rate! That’s probably the most amazing aspect about this battery.

[@lepayen]

Well that can't be correct at all, because a 50 volt capacitor can only run one of these for maybe 10 minutes tops, and that's holding thousands of times more amps. I can't imagine that a lithium ion battery would have this running for so long, and it's a better battery. I am willing to bet that despite putting the starting date, the one thing they don't put is the repair dates when they replace parts.

[@deltab9768]

@@lepayen this isn’t a capacitor. It’s a battery and a large one at that. The whole thing probably has less power than a single 18650 lithium cell and it’s much bigger.

[@stephenfanthorpe2708]

@@lepayen there’s 1000 000 000 nano amperes in 1amp ,might need to redo your calculations

[@analog_guy]

@deltab9768. Yes, the numbers work out to about 3 watt hours of energy. In comparison, a modern alkaline AAA cell will deliver about 2 watt hours of energy when subjected to a low power load and an alkaline AA cell will deliver about 4 watt hours of energy under a low power load. However, neither of these cells will last anywhere near 183 years due to self-discharge. The pile in the video must generate its energy through an electrochemical process and have very low self-discharge. I have to disagree with the statement made at time 4:18 to 4:25 in the video. If the pile were purely electrostatic, it would discharge fairly rapidly as there would be no way to replace the energy used. Electrostatic demonstrations get virtually all their energy due to the energy gained in physically pulling apart the two substances. The initial charge transfer that happens when the substances are in contact actually consumes a tiny bit of energy due to the electrical resistance in the substances as the substances go from a higher energy state to a lower energy state.

[@perkins1439]

I use four pennies and four nickels I clean them up real good will the metal brush on my table grinder stack them penny nickel penny nickel etcetera put tiny pieces of paper towel in between each coin and put enough vinegar on it to wet the paper towels in between and I got almost .51 volts I call it my 24-cent battery

[@Br1cht]

Our gracious host is the quintessential Englishman, like the good fellows I used to meet before they transfigured Europe into the modern version, thanks for the bran food.

[@Opel_Guy]

I have a copy of one of those English Mechanic magazines from 1895. Fascinating read if you ever find a copy. There is a small piece about how to make a dry cell battery.

[@pasqualemasullo6844]

Can I have a copy pls?

[@12thsonofisrael]

Excellent union of science and history Sir Robert. 👍🕊

[@ShafaqIftikhar-pw9ld]

Thank you Robert for another great video providing us with an insight to technologies/invetions that we would have not known about!!!

[@jonnyswalk4674]

I had some POWERFUL PILES that wouldn’t quit once……but that’s a whole other story 😅 Nice video Rob 👍Thanks for sharing 👍Penblwydd Hapus all 🎄🎅🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿Jonathan 👍😉

[@taylormayhew369]

I made some out of magnesium pellets and silver pendant discs made a crude one at 32 volts. Keeps 12 volt systems charged with with a capacitor and a transistor switch for DC pulse charging

[@nubletten]

Have you done experiments? Say, could i calculate the materials and produce a stable voltage for a raspberry pi?

[@taylormayhew369]

@@nubletten a bit some of them quit working when they dry out and then act as a really good humidity gauge. Other build types stop working when they get wet and work better Dried out on the stove or even put off the most power when attached to the stove pipe when they get heated and they act as a thermal electric generators especially the salt versions with copper and iron. Very reliable copper pipe with iron rod and salt compressed between

[@deltab9768]

I got a “fun fly stick” (a small handheld battery powered van de graff generator) for Christmas when I was 15. It had an experiment kit, including a much larger and louder electrostatic bell. Almost immediately I tried one of the things that the book specifically said not to do: I made a capacitor from a plastic mustard squirt bottle, some saline and aluminum foil. If I remember correctly you could connect this capacitor across the big Franklin’s bell and it would get up to maximum speed after 30 seconds of charging. Then it would take 30 minutes for it to stop. I’ll have to see if I still have my notes, this all happened a decade ago.

[@HuSiaCat]

Cool !

[@MichaelRada-INDUSTRY50]

Dear Robert thank you. Every of your videos is like a CHRISTMAS GIFT unwrapping, so i think you are the SANTA CLAUS himself

[@Techboxreview]

Fascinating video mate. I’m glad I watched it 😊

[@Utubegofukurself]

"Non stop ring bell...." also " its been stopped from time to time....."

[@victoryfirst2878]

This battery is ust amazing Robert, I bet I will be sleeping in the ground and the bells will be ringing Sir.

[@funlegomathteachathome1256]

Your Zamboni video was one of the best and I have tried to replicate it but have been unsuccessful. I plan to try again making the dry pile.

[@chaosopher23]

Graphite and carbon sources are easily available from art shops. Both are available in powdered form and are of high purity. So is aluminium powder.

[@CH-pt8fz]

Thank you for sharing. Merry Christmas.

[@khristophertaylor3718]

Awesome I've only watched a few hundred of your videos but I plan to watch lots more thank you so much no this is howdy from Mount Shasta California

[@dangeary2134]

One of the things that kids were encouraged to try was to stack copper Pennie’s with silver dimes and a piece of carbon paper between some of the coins. Dime, penny, paper, and so on. You would put the stack into a salt solution, and you then had a battery, but not a lot of power. LEDs didn’t exist back then, and even the smallest incandescent flashlight bulbs would not light up by this thing. The instructions said to put wires at each end, and touch both to your tongue. You could “taste” the weak current, which was so low as to be harmless. We no longer have silver coins in circulation, and I’m not sure if it would work with today’s dimes.

[@voice2skull.]

And won't work with today's pennies neither. Not copper anymore!

[@taylormayhew369]

I've also been experimenting with vitamin c mold making a living citric cell that dissolves the magnesium and lives in little cotton fabrics in between the silver magnesium assemblies

[@perkins1439]

Frank Zamboni invented the ice resurfacer for ice skating rinks it's called a Zamboni those zamboni's must be smart people

[@stevetobias4890]

Very cool. Merry Christmas Rob

[@stephaneislistening6103]

So nice to see the old workshop again! After so many years of my being away.

[@adavies9239]

love your chanel ❤one of the best on youtube !!

[@avonneave2131]

Merry Christmas Robert all the best regards from here on the West Coast side of Australia 🌏

[@alwardslab8732]

I found this last week: N. B. Stubblefield earth battery U.S. pantent 600,457 8th march 1898, could be interesting to give it a spin?

[@leroyessel2010]

Overunity is represented by EirexTech with high pressure cavitation using any type of water.

[@Someone-A3]

On KZbin? Link?

[@mikaelfransson3658]

I just love this Rob.! You challange us to think a bit deeper as a testrun on a purpetuel motion but only the first 150 years to say it might work! A test for a few years more and it might pay back the working coat to make it in a few more years!😂 /Mikael

[@wurstelei1356]

I wonder, if there is a commercial version of this battery and if it works. I really would like to see a video on an updated version of that battery with the carbon paint.

[@jj74qformerlyjailbreak3]

We love you in Ohio Robert. Hope you had a great Christmas season and another wonderful new year.

[@miketanner1920]

Merry Christmas brother and have a very happy new year ❤🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦😁👍✌ God bless you and your's Just Saying

[@pixelpatter01]

Great video on an interesting subject. I have experimented on this myself using printer paper spray on graphite lubricant (solvent carrier and graphite) and using galvanizing spray paint zinc powder (Rust-oleum cold galvanizing compound )for the anode side.I tested it by just spraying it on opposite sides of the printer paper and cutting it into squares just as you did. Using a high impedance Fluke meter I could read a voltage with about 50 sheets. The next time I tried it it didn't work and I wondered if the sprays had penetrated the paper or shorted out at the edges or perhaps the humidity had an effect. I will try a template to mask the edges of the paper to avoid 'shorting' when cutting through the paper someday.

[@voice2skull.]

Whoa. 😮 can't wait 'til I reach your level.

[@KraftyUk]

I love it, but its not going to light up my christmas tree, thats ok because my Bedini motor is doing that for me lol

[@AtlasReburdened]

You should post the video of it.

[@wmmichaud]

this reminds me of Ed Leedskalnin's "Perpetual Motion Holder" perhaps worked the same way and the base is hiding the closed loop and was charged initially and forever held its charge?

[@gabydewilde]

It would be so cool if Robbert would follow the instructions in Ed's book.

[@dcferwerda]

Always love your videos

[@salilsahani2721]

Thank you :)

[@MrBilldapilot]

Robert, as always, gets us thinking about something really interesting! This video is no exception! The fact that this contraption stops and starts as a function of humidity is very telling about how it operates. Capacitors can be discharged due to high humidity but CAN NOT recharge themselves when it's dry. The concept that this thing is still operational from a charge applied over a 100 years ago is just scientifically silly. I wonder about the triboelectric effect due to the silk thread sliding through the air. Perpetual motion machine??? Not likely but it might help explain why it stops with high humidity. Another obvious reason for stopping is the electric conductivity change of the silk due to the humidity. Considering 1 nano amp = 6.2 billion electrons in 1 second it's far from likely the charge on the capacitors is from the original charge so many years ago. Skin effects on the surface of the capacitors and internal resistance / leaks would have discharged it in days or months. However, small Electron flow between the dissimilar materials is a plausible explanation. Like a really lousy chemical battery multiplied by 100s of cells. And also obvious is the Thermocouple effect which is similar to the explanation above. There are lots of reasons it looks like a super capacitor but ... Don't be fooled by the arm waving explanation provided by the original inventor.His story has been told so many times it just must be true!!!! LOL. NOT! But, after working on particle accelerators for 40 years I know the first explanation of an anomaly is often wishful thinking. It's likely the got it to work from a single charge for a day or two and set it aside after it stopped due to capacitor discharge. Perhaps he checked it out a month or two later and It was amazingly working.... For other reasons than capacitor charge ...

[@jamiethomas4079]

I have a radio shack indoor/outdoor thermometer thats been running on the same AA duracell for a little over 20 years. The battery expired in 2003. I don’t understand how its still working. I found it randomly about 10 years ago and now occasionally pull it out to test the battery voltage. Last I checked some months ago it was at like 1.34v.

[@billwoehl3051]

Robert, could the pile be piezo electric? Like Hutchinson crystal batteries? Or maybe drawing from the incoherent electrostatic downward flow from this gigantic capacitor we live inside of?

[@kpnconsulting8739]

What a nice little puzzle! Just from the performance figures (high voltage/low current and long life) I'd guess it uses radioisotopes as the "fuel". But ...1840? Very mysterious. As the cell is already sealed in a jar, looking for decay product buildup (like radon) might reveal the secret...

[@deltab9768]

It’s a super slow battery type chemical reaction. A quick calculation says that over the last 180 years it has delivered less energy than a normal flashlight or cellphone battery.

[@anveshas1306]

Great video! I had an important question though regarding copper inks. After you inspired me to begin my adventure in conductive inks, I was having issues making a graphene copper ink. I bought copper powder that is 325 mesh or 44 micrometers and the problem is, my sample gets very varied values of conductivity when u place the probes in diffferent areas. This is even the case in 60 minutes of sonification. I really dont know what I am doing wrong and would appreicate some help @Robert Murray-Smith

[@lashark06]

Reminds me of the salt battery's that would last for years

[@jameshenson8148]

perpetual motion

[@markhathaway9456]

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Have a Happy New Year's celebration!

[@stewartpalmer2456]

I can see some of those piles being routed through a fractal capacitor system.

[@cmasailor]

Wonder if you could get it to operate one of those ratcheting cog gizmos to turn a wheel... gear, etc... or if the friction coefficients would be too great ... toothbrush ratchet...

[@damedesmontagnes]

Can you explain more specifically how you assembled the foil and ink sheets together?

[@jansmit4628]

What about the chance on shortcircuits on the edges of the square paper/aluminium parts. The carbon ink soaked into the paper, so is already very close to the sticky side of the aluminium foil. Is that glue the isolation?

[@we4selradio591]

could somebody show us all how to make a long duration blinkie or throwie from this??

[@philliphaley1241]

I would really love you to showcase the bedini 18 coiler i built...Its built in a wheely flightcase and works...I will deliver from leeds free for you to test first..just uploading to my youtube channel

[@AboveAverageMan97]

Dry Piles? That sounds medically.....PAINFULL!!!

[@mossig]

It picks up energy from other atoms in the line of site that has a higher charge. These energy transfers are everywhere.

[@antoniopacelli]

Zamboni for Ever...

[@danchesney631]

I’ve heard that the Zambonis we see at hockey games also run forever, & that they have to jack the wheels off the ground when they’re not cleaning & flooding the ice.

[@simonsimon-gq3rk]

is it possible to use it to run the DANIEL GENDRON electrostatic motor? this motor have 75% efficiency and good torque maybe a key to use static elecricity as power source....

[@john-ic5pz]

AND it'll scrape your ice rink flat for you too.

[@grahamsmith5780]

Thank you, I enjoyed your video as usual. I have to ask what is up with the sound quality, was very poor.

[@kevinmcmuhammad4841]

HOWYA ROBERT 🇮🇪 HAPPY CHRISTMAS 🎄

[@hardwareful]

The loudness war, 2023.

[@lorenbush8876]

I like your heater better it's a lot more useful. Can I make the graphene from powdered graphite and 30 or 35% hydrogen peroxide like you did with your "Super Easy Graphene" I think it was some sort of flaked graphite? According to google graphene is the best electrical conductor there is.Thanks Robert

[@fuffoon]

Forever or a long time? Are we breaking physics again? Da Shi, there is no physics again.

[@GrantVisserUK]

Thinking this may be a great feed source for a simple joule thief circuit ......

[@damedesmontagnes]

What paint is that? ElectroSmoke?

[@thamesmud]

Dry piles, Im sure they make a cream for that.😅

[@valimake6827]

Can you please look in to Karpen pile?

[@mich6528]

Infrared-water battery from Roberto Germano, Vittorio Elia, et alii

[@benjamindemontgomery6317]

I think he found something uniqe when studying frogs, that he did not tell the rest of us. That is why these piles are still a bit of a mystery.

[@filepz629]

❤

[@loucipher67]

scaled up I'll watch this for free in a thousand years

[@AtlasReburdened]

Don't let the door hit you, lad.

[@kurtschlarb9762]

Seems like this would be a stable, long-lasting power source for a clock.

[@Hj61S827]

A clock? It could power the planet for free once farmed in mass.

[@palpytine]

Yes, but how does it resurface ice rinks?

[@will7its]

Yeah but can it get my prius to the corner store for smokes and gin???

[@livingladolcevita7318]

that might be useful for marker bouhys out at sea using flashing lights. Yes I know I've spelt it wrong lol

[@Clintimtired]

How do you stick the foil to the paper does it come with a peel and stick thing on the back

[@sonclearbrahman-ar1461]

Yes, it is adhesive tape with peel-off backing. However, the adhesive is usually non-conductive. Copper foil tape with conductive adhesive is readily available.

[@paulleftwick7782]

brass when moving does atract to a magnet is that happening too?

[@dragoscoco2173]

Not in this case. It is just electrostatics. The bell touches one side and receives a charge, which pushes it to the other side where it receives another charge of opposite sign, pushing it backwards.

[@ManyHeavens42]

You think you occupy one Space not true you Occupy 2* hard to tell, time and Distance are One ,So you can't Tell without leaving your body first.

[@frictionhitch]

Electromagnetism is a fundamental force of the universe like gravity. We don't call objects in stable orbits due to gravitational forces impossible perpetual motion machines.

[@ManyHeavens42]

You want psychic Powers You can get them by accident like I did, using gamma ray bursts Opens pathways you didn't know you Had makes you a Genius level 5 information and energy you could be a God and not know it ? 👍

[@paulwright8378]

My mum's got a pacemaker that lasts 10 years and more

[@VacuumTube88]

A while ago you made a video making a "self charging" supercapacitor using your conductive ink and an activated carbon fiber cloth. It beats the Zamboni Pile hands down.

[@dcferwerda]

Also I would really love to talk to you on the phone

[@mortenjohansen5781]

Tihis is intriguing and one has to wonder why it's not been researched by big companies. I'm not fond of conspiracy theroies but I sometimes have to wonder if the big companies have, without agreement, just decided to be quiet and decided trhat somehow this represents a threat to their profits. Let's face it, people love taking things apart and if the big companies got this to deliver more current, pretty soon somone would be splabbing the specs.

[@Gex121]

1:11 Is the measurement correct? 2000 volts sounds way too much..

[@ezequieladrianminniti6252]

What is true for sure, is that this battery has the lowest self-discharge ever seen.

[@thejaff23]

Forgive me, I've only learned what I know about these things from your own channel , yet my first thought, when you mentioned that it was still being debated if it was a chemical battery or an electrostatic device, was how to deplete it more quickly and get a solid answer. This led me to think of my next line of thinking, which was if your explorations of the fractal capacitor might be of exploratory value here? While this might not cause it to deplete any more quickly, might we get a more usable output with such an arrangement?

[@nolan412]

The bell is an environmental vibration collector?

[@nolan412]

Oh! It did have a battery. 🤔

[@nolan412]

🤷‍♂️ I still see a pendulum at the right frequency to get nudged by two ringing bells in resonance with the world.

[@DonaldMcKenzie-nn4pw]

Can you name other “generators”? I assume solar would be a generator. Slow corrosion can be a generator.

[@funlegomathteachathome1256]

Yes let’s build a 12 volt version. Never replace your car battery, what.

[@picobyte]

The battery is not dry. It relies on humidity in the air.

[@trevorsambrooks1988]

If that's true why does the motion of the bell striker slow/stop in humid weather? Introduction of moisture to these piles surely brings about galvanic decay, which should kill it off in a matter of months (albeit that in those months output wattage would be higher). This one's been going for 150 years. Zamboni patented a dry pile, sealed against outside elements, I'm pretty sure it's dry.

[@picobyte]

@@trevorsambrooks1988 True. It needs very dry conditions to last. The decay has to follow it's energy demand as slow as possible.

[@picobyte]

To much moist lowers voltage buildup as charges get shorted out via the electrolyte between layers of materials, faster than it charged in the 'dry' statel.

[@peterlang777]

Hygroelectric nanotechnology can run eternally on humidity❤

[@Ammoniummetavanadate]

No.

[@peterlang777]

@@Ammoniummetavanadate yes

[@AtlasReburdened]

​@@peterlang777No, it operates on changes in humidity, not on the mere precence thereof.

[@peterlang777]

@@AtlasReburdened it operates by its contact. Brownian motion of water molecules converted by the electrokinetic streaming effect

[@My2Drumsticks]

Calling it a battery doesn’t seem right. Battery, seems like energy from another device is being used to charge it. This seems to generate energy the energy from its components.

[@AtlasReburdened]

Primary batteries are a thing.

[@onieyoh9478]

Ah yes, the worlds most useless battery. Useless because no one will open it up to see how it works.

[@dragoscoco2173]

It is not that misterious. It is just a humongous battery compared to what it is made to power. My wrist watch for example works on a tiny watch battery and lasts 3 years usually. A battery of the size of the Zamboni used to power my watch would in principle be able to power it for tens of thousands of years. More than the written history timeframe of mankind.

[@scotttovey]

The fact that a specific level of humidity can cause the device to stop function seems to indicate that it is an electrostatic battery. During winter dry air conditions, when you drag your feet on the carpet and then touch something metal, you get an electrostatic shock. When this happens in the dark, you can see the very brief light of the spark. During summer when the air is most humid, this phenomenon tends to not happen. If however, you can generate enough static electricity by rubbing a balloon or something else, then yes, you will get a shock. This discussion is not about what someone can do by artificially manipulating the environment. This discussion is about what occurs as the air naturally changes in humidity due to whether conditions.

[@sompka1]

I'm thinking its just a dry cell of many stacks. Probably generating a few KV from the sheer number of cells in series. High voltage DC is essentially "static" electricity and will generate noticeable fields like the one seen between the bells. Higher humidity and "leakage" occurs between plates, higher than its output current if the humidity goes too high. Maybe even between the bells as well.

[@fuiehfjfcnsl]

Ein Kommentar

[@zacharyybarra]

Ever hear of the first night vision ? They seen 5th dimension beings. During the last ww.

[@Munchausen007]

I loved this, not good for marine gliders. I think you need a better microphone. 🙂

[@suecharnock9369]

so..... whoever decided lithium was the best thing for a vehicle EV battery clearly and seriously missed the mark!

[@user-fd7vt5zx7q]

How would you build this using electro static only???