Amazing Molybdenum

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  • čas přidán 30. 07. 2019
  • Previous wire video: • Exploding Wires
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    More links and info in full description ↓↓↓
    Download unduloid microscope images and more here: / 28806306
    Featuring Neil Barnes and Martyn Polikaoff. Film by Brady Haran.
    Discuss this episode on Brady's subreddit: redd.it/cke82v
    Also thanks to the University of Nottingham Nanoscale and Microscale Research Centre.
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  • Věda a technologie

Komentáře • 1,4K

  • @brmevans
    @brmevans Před 4 lety +2609

    Neal in an undershirt is an element all in its own.

    • @ethangoldsmith9332
      @ethangoldsmith9332 Před 4 lety +377

      Rockhardium?

    • @coreyschelke1962
      @coreyschelke1962 Před 4 lety +142

      I went into the comment section just to find a comment about neal and wasnt disappointed.

    • @Mynx31
      @Mynx31 Před 4 lety +159

      I can see him fighting bears in his youth.

    • @1224chrisng
      @1224chrisng Před 4 lety +42

      After applying the principles of green chemistry, Peter reduced the amount of solvent needed to make 10 grams of Neil by 60 fold

    • @fryncyaryorvjink2140
      @fryncyaryorvjink2140 Před 4 lety +72

      I wasn't prepared for that level of manliness

  • @clutchyfinger
    @clutchyfinger Před 4 lety +700

    Neal is like one of those old, wise anime characters that takes off his robe when he has to meet a challenge and he's ripped, then literally picks up a car and throws it at his enemy.

    • @sirdigalot1978
      @sirdigalot1978 Před 4 lety +28

      he is a time travelling Saitama, living out his older years in Nottingham. he gets really angry when he misses a sale at the supermarket.

    • @v0w1x2
      @v0w1x2 Před 4 lety +2

      I think that he's a closet shearer.

    • @kevincanavan2440
      @kevincanavan2440 Před 4 lety +6

      King Boomi

    • @marcmckenzie5110
      @marcmckenzie5110 Před 4 lety

      ...and then sweeps up the glass so no one will be hurt. I'm a major fan of Neal.

    • @nastyfyme
      @nastyfyme Před 4 lety +3

      Uncle Iroh 👴

  • @georgebritten8208
    @georgebritten8208 Před 4 lety +249

    I've been subbed to you guys since I started secondary school in 2008 over a decade ago! Now studying a degree in chemistry 👍

  • @themanohman7157
    @themanohman7157 Před 4 lety +249

    In this video: Neil and Sir Martyn sucessfully reinvent the lightbulb

    • @PinataOblongata
      @PinataOblongata Před 4 lety +5

      Next up: Manganese!

    • @wizlish
      @wizlish Před 4 lety +11

      @Klippy Klop What Edison is remembered for is not the incandescent bulb (which Faraday and Swan have clear priority on, among the many others) but the intentionally high-resistance bulb connected in ways that mimick contemporary commercial gas lighting. To my knowledge no one before him considered high resistance an advantage; the idea was to maximize light output for minimum amperage.

    • @ynohdomi
      @ynohdomi Před 4 lety +2

      I'd be interested if the experiment would yield similar results if Chromium and Tungsten were tested.

    • @Hopeless_and_Forlorn
      @Hopeless_and_Forlorn Před 3 lety +8

      Also, and of equal importance, thin-film vapor deposition of metals.

    • @bobvines00
      @bobvines00 Před 3 lety +2

      @@Hopeless_and_Forlorn I wonder how the "thin-film vapor deposition" that we saw will affect the vacuum chamber for future tests. Will that _adversely_ affect future tests (of any/all kinds)?

  • @glenngriffon8032
    @glenngriffon8032 Před 4 lety +474

    It's always a good day when Neil is impressed by something.

  • @confucheese
    @confucheese Před 4 lety +632

    Fun fact: Molybdenum is actually used in some novel enzymes in the human body. I believe we only have 4 enzymes which use it, and 3 of the four only use a single molybdenum atom.
    For context, we have approximately 1300 *known* distinct enzymes in total.

    • @flyingskyward2153
      @flyingskyward2153 Před 4 lety +7

      Do these enzymes have a similar role, or evolutionary history?

    • @fukpoeslaw3613
      @fukpoeslaw3613 Před 4 lety +21

      How many of those 1300 have metals?
      Which metals?
      Any with more than one metal?
      Which?

    • @Yora21
      @Yora21 Před 4 lety +40

      It's pretty important in plants. There's only about 15 elements that plants need, and it's one of them.

    • @Chriva
      @Chriva Před 4 lety +25

      That's pretty Metal, man :D

    • @EebstertheGreat
      @EebstertheGreat Před 4 lety +108

      @@flyingskyward2153 They are all oxidoreductases, which means they can take electrons from electron donors like hypotaurine and transfer them to electron receptors like NAD+, forming NADH and taurine (and also consuming water in this example). They are involved in the synthesis of just a few important molecules in humans, including taurine and tryptophan, as well as in the anabolism of xanthine. But in plants and especially bacteria, molybdenum enzymes are much more common. Various bacterial molybdenum oxidoreductases are involved in the synthesis of essential vitamins, like B₆. In addition to oxidoreductases, there is molybdenum nitrogenase, which is responsible for reducing molecular nitrogen in the air to ammonia that organisms can use. These "nitrogen-fixing bacteria" are essential to life and are the reason legumes, which harbor these bacteria, were sometimes planted in rotation to improve the quality of the soil.
      However, not all organisms contain molybdenum enzymes. _Saccharomyces cerevisiae
      ,_ the species of yeast used to bake bread and brew beer, does not seem to require molybdenum at all.

  • @BriarHood
    @BriarHood Před 3 lety +39

    I'm studying electron microscopy and I recreated this experiment! I have heated wires and they have beads. I looked at them briefly and there were trioxide crystals! I'll keep everyone posted!

    • @beni2cc
      @beni2cc Před rokem +2

      What did you discover?

    • @eirikbrattsti
      @eirikbrattsti Před rokem +7

      he did infact, not keep anyone posted

  • @Kumquat_Lord
    @Kumquat_Lord Před 4 lety +44

    I love things like this. Science in its purest form, just a "huh, that's weird. I wonder what caused that" thought that leads to new discoveries.

  • @k.c.sunshine1934
    @k.c.sunshine1934 Před 4 lety +173

    Beginning: Let's do a fun experiment. End: Science demands proper follow-up.
    Very cool equipment! Thank you!

    • @Derekzparty
      @Derekzparty Před 2 lety +1

      As Mythbusters once said; The difference between goofing off and science is writing it down!

  • @jgedutis
    @jgedutis Před 4 lety +441

    Molybdenum at a microscopic scale looks like a combination of snowflakes and flowers. Here is hoping for molybdenum fractal art.

    • @stanbondarev9256
      @stanbondarev9256 Před 4 lety +4

      This is typical eutectic structure but rare to be studied as an object of Mo-MoO2 phases.

    • @philipp3877
      @philipp3877 Před 4 lety +1

      @@stanbondarev9256 how is this structure linked to an eutectic composition? (genuine interest)

    • @Aetohatir
      @Aetohatir Před 4 lety +8

      It's a Molybdenum Oxide, not Molybdenum

    • @Just_Sara
      @Just_Sara Před 4 lety +4

      Aetohatir Can we call it moxide? Please? Pretty please?

    • @jgedutis
      @jgedutis Před 4 lety +1

      @@Just_Sara Well... now I want some Moxie

  • @kevinwhite9919
    @kevinwhite9919 Před 4 lety +5

    FYI - you also annealed the moly wire as well as cleaned it of surface contaminates when you warmed it in vacuum. We used a similar setup to anneal (soften) and remove oxide from fairly thin Niobium wire, which we then used in a repurposed Al/Au wirebonder to electrically link a wafer-fabricated SQUID structure to a larger clamp interface for a sensor coil. The clamp interface and Niobium wire were superconducting at the experimental temps we were interested in (generally, less than 5mK). It ended up being an excellent platform with which to test SQUID operation and performance. In any event, if you need relatively clean and soft moly wire, or want to wirebond some IC structure using moly wire, you've re-invented the perfect way to prep it. You'll want to experiment with multiple cycles to get it truly soft (though it can't be too soft if you want it for wirebonding - it can break or get gummed up in the feed). As always, thanks for the videos!

  • @tarheels100
    @tarheels100 Před 4 lety +85

    A beautiful example of how fruitful curiosity-driven research can be. It's refreshing in today's application-obsessed research environment.

    • @Bobsry16
      @Bobsry16 Před 4 lety

      💯 I love these videos! Release the chemical curiousity.

    • @richardwheeler6115
      @richardwheeler6115 Před 3 lety

      Fruitful? In what way?

    • @richardwheeler6115
      @richardwheeler6115 Před 3 lety

      Austin Spencer Fruitful? In what way?

    • @tarheels100
      @tarheels100 Před 3 lety +7

      @@richardwheeler6115 Fruitful in the sense that it can lead to new discoveries with big impacts. Curiosity-driven research tends to be approached with a broader perspective and is more open to diverging towards opportunities as they arise. Application-focused research tends to have a narrower perspective, generally leading to small incremental improvements. Instead of "going with the flow" of where research leads you, you tend to arduously tunnel in the direction of the application.

    • @mikeconnery4652
      @mikeconnery4652 Před rokem

      I agree, sometimes taking an experiment past the point of your objective can bring astonishing results.

  • @Snowmunkee
    @Snowmunkee Před 4 lety +280

    Good gracious, remind me not to get into a fight with Neil. Dude is in better shape than i will ever be.

    • @fensoxx
      @fensoxx Před 4 lety +8

      Chuck Norris trains with Neil

    • @Beer_Dad1975
      @Beer_Dad1975 Před 4 lety +1

      Neil even lifts bro.

    • @KapiteinKrentebol
      @KapiteinKrentebol Před 4 lety +21

      That's because Neal got superpowers after an experiment gone awry, he got exeptionally strong but lost his vocal cords.
      Prof. Poliakov also mutated, his brainsize got twice as big, hidden by his haircut. It came with a 2000% increase in in cortex activity and his I.Q. tests are consistently 200 points which suggests it must be much higher.

    • @carrynoweight
      @carrynoweight Před 4 lety +6

      He looks like a total badass, and that wink ant the end had me dying

    • @calebengelbrecht7812
      @calebengelbrecht7812 Před 4 lety

      Lol

  • @miller4980
    @miller4980 Před 4 lety +128

    I can't get enough. You guys are so fun to watch, and It's especially great because I feel rewarded after learning something so amazing! Thank you!

  • @DFPercush
    @DFPercush Před 4 lety +37

    10:08 He does speak! But we mortals are unworthy to hear.

  • @DonSjap
    @DonSjap Před 4 lety +2

    Great video! Excellent to see some genuine research being done to get to the bottom of things!
    A small comment regarding the thin film (9:41) seen on the inside of the vacuum chamber window after the experiment: The molybdenum wire used in the video seems to have been stored under ambient conditions (i.e. no protective N2-atmosphere), so a small but significant amount of oxygen will have chemisorbed onto, and diffused into, the molybdenum surface even before the start of the experiment. Since no effort is made to remove oxygen/oxides in the molybdenum wire (e.g. by reduction with H2), the thin film residue left on the vacuum chamber window is most likely caused by sublimation of molybdenum oxide species on the surface of the wire, and not by evaporation of molybdenum metal as is suggested in the video. At normal pressure, MoO3 already starts sublimation at temperatures of 700 C, while molybdenum metal melts (but doesn't evaporates) at temperatures as high as 2600 C. Under vacuum MoOx sublimation followed by condensation on the vacuum chamber window is still a more likely cause of thin film formation than melting and evaporation of Mo metal.
    To verify the cause of the thin film formation, you can apply thermal reduction in H2 to the molybdenum wire prior to its exposure to high current in vacuum, and see if the inside of the vacuum chamber still gets covered by the same thin film residue. Next video? ;)

  • @unvergebeneid
    @unvergebeneid Před 4 lety +87

    Wow, it's incredible what's possible these days. To get a spectrographic analysis of tiny parts of those electron microscope images... mind bending.

    • @hassiaschbi
      @hassiaschbi Před 4 lety +10

      Michael Nilson the lab I worked at while studying got a desktop REM in the size of a big PC Tower, could do all kinds of shenanigans, like using air to get electrons instead of needing a vakuum and metal coated surfaces, spectrographic analyses too!
      The damn thing did cost 800.000€ though 😬

  • @phillrullzXBL
    @phillrullzXBL Před 4 lety +185

    Wonder if changing the frequency of the electricity will effect the spacing of the blobs, look like standing waves. Like an eletrical harmonic

    • @zuthalsoraniz6764
      @zuthalsoraniz6764 Před 4 lety +30

      The wavelength of 50 Hz line AC is ~6000 km though, so these would be extremely high harmonics, where you don't have much difference between the 1000000th and 999999th harmonic.

    • @kametrixomtikara8726
      @kametrixomtikara8726 Před 4 lety +58

      I'd think the spacing comes from the surface tension of the liquid, similar to how water droplets also only come in one size.

    • @Strothy2
      @Strothy2 Před 4 lety

      Probably it will switching to 120 Hz should look awesome

    • @Guitar.Rookie
      @Guitar.Rookie Před 4 lety +6

      I think changing the Oxygen amount in the Vacuum Chamber would actually Alter the Spacing. 🤔👍

    • @stopstalkingyouspookybastard
      @stopstalkingyouspookybastard Před 4 lety +3

      its dc not ac

  • @aaronchristopher71
    @aaronchristopher71 Před 4 lety +5

    Unduloid. My vote for “word of the year.”

  • @Edge51
    @Edge51 Před 4 lety +3

    The vapor trails coming off in streams looks pretty interesting in slow-mo as the wire oxidizes.

  • @devvynully
    @devvynully Před 4 lety +21

    I think Neil was on his day off building a doomsday device in his Bond villain lair when he was called in to help with the video but didn't have time to change.

  • @Obsidianfire
    @Obsidianfire Před 4 lety +12

    If you measured the resistance of the wire and knowing the melting point of the oxide metals, you could calculate what wattage you'd need to create the droplets without actually melting the majority of the wire.

    • @mikeconnery4652
      @mikeconnery4652 Před rokem

      If an inner wire had a higher melting point it could maybe be more interesting.

  • @KanishkaWijesekara
    @KanishkaWijesekara Před 4 lety +4

    Keep a flat substrate in direct line of sight with the wire and you're basically doing Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) of Molly. This thermal evaporation of a metal target is one of the most fundamental techniques of growing thin films that are several nanometers in thickness.

  • @dathaniel9403
    @dathaniel9403 Před 4 lety +2

    One additional experiment I'd like to see performed is the heating of a molybdenum wire when horizontal and under tension. Since the wire expands when heated, it droops, and the pattern of the unduloids is made to be irregular. My prediction is that a light tension, perhaps by attaching small springs to the clips holding each side of the wire, would allow the wire to stay completely horizontal and result in pristine unduloids that may have an even greater beauty when viewed with an electron microscope.

  • @LiLi-or2gm
    @LiLi-or2gm Před 4 lety +9

    Reminding me yet again just how much I love science (and the Periodic Videos team)!! Thanks for the new desktop background, too, Prof!

  • @laserowy_general
    @laserowy_general Před 4 lety +90

    Neil is a true legend.
    Motorcycle boots all day long.
    Prof Martyn. Neil let's do molybdenum experiments.
    Neil. Hold my 🍻

    • @the_original_Bilb_Ono
      @the_original_Bilb_Ono Před 4 lety +7

      They would probably say "hold my pint" lol

    • @750kv8
      @750kv8 Před 4 lety +1

      @@the_original_Bilb_Ono - "Hold my Potassium."

    • @elarr8733
      @elarr8733 Před 4 lety

      He doesn't always drink beer, but when he does, he prefers Dos Equis.

  • @Magmafrost13
    @Magmafrost13 Před 4 lety +10

    As soon as you mentioned it might be oxide I was just waiting for you to do it in a vacuum chamber

  • @satoau1
    @satoau1 Před 3 lety +1

    this is such a great example of how ideas are born. individually you would have had nothing, but together with each person throwing in their thoughts, those thoughts could combine and lead to new ideas.
    science, and any progress in general, comes from discussion and collaboration.

  • @johnopalko5223
    @johnopalko5223 Před 4 lety +21

    I wouldn't expect the frequency of the AC current to affect the spacing of the unduloids. The wavelength at 50 Hz is 6000 km.

    • @TheGodpharma
      @TheGodpharma Před 4 lety +8

      It would be if you're talking about the speed of light. However in this case I would have thought it would be the speed of sound in the wire that would be relevant.

    • @NwoDispatcher
      @NwoDispatcher Před 4 lety

      Probably has more to do with the surface tension of the mo-oxide

  • @NJ_Tube
    @NJ_Tube Před 4 lety +4

    I greatly enjoy the usual Periodic Videos content, but it was particularly satisfying to see an update on a previous experiment.

  • @ZomBeeNature
    @ZomBeeNature Před 4 lety +2

    I'm glad you did both follow-up experiments, plus showed the evaporated Molybdenum condensed to refract the light.

  • @mardiray159
    @mardiray159 Před 4 lety +2

    The unduloids remind me of ‘waves on wires’ from basic physics. Think oscilloscopes, sine curves, slow motion photos of vibrating cello strings, etc. Maybe they are forming in the calm between nodes of vibration?

  • @wktodd
    @wktodd Před 4 lety +15

    exactly what we see on Moly wire elements in our vac furnaces :-) moly goes glass hard.
    your micrographs show nicely how moly wire is a sintered material.

    • @docostler
      @docostler Před 4 lety +9

      @Karl Papp Tell them kids to get their own dang blasted buzzword. Moly was moly long before it was Molly.

    • @docostler
      @docostler Před 4 lety

      @Karl Papp Yep, apparently.

  • @phonotical
    @phonotical Před 4 lety +102

    Are you using alternating current to heat the wire? I wonder if a higher or lower frequency would change the appearance or regularity of the unduloids, or would direct current produce the same results.
    I'd also test it with a different source of wire

    • @tetrabromobisphenol
      @tetrabromobisphenol Před 4 lety +7

      The wavelength of 50 Hz current is on the order of thousands of kilometers. The only way the frequency of the input current could have any effect on unduloid formation is if it was causing the wire to vibrate at the fundamental or at low harmonics. I've seen that happen when you have two conductors in close proximity. But in isolation, it should have negligible effect. Indeed, he controlled for this (and other effects) by doing the experiment in vacuum. So I highly doubt it would make much difference at all.

    • @phonotical
      @phonotical Před 4 lety +2

      @@tetrabromobisphenol thousands of kilometers? Where did you get that from 🤣

    • @pgtmr2713
      @pgtmr2713 Před 4 lety +5

      NERD FIGHT!!! No scratching, no biting, no breaking glasses where they can't be taped, keep it above the pocket protector and GO!

    • @TillDerWilly
      @TillDerWilly Před 4 lety +12

      @@phonotical speed of light divided by frequency?

    • @phonotical
      @phonotical Před 4 lety +2

      @@TillDerWilly 50hz,50 times a second, if you can measure it on a scope, or head it audibly, change said frequency and observe for changes in pattern or frequency

  • @tayet6875
    @tayet6875 Před 4 lety +1

    I am so glad you did a follow-up on this episode. I had so many questions and thought up a few possible answers. This was really enlightening and the nanotech pictures are fantastic!!

  • @pomegranatechannel
    @pomegranatechannel Před 4 lety +2

    Thank you for uploading the images and PDF files. The SEM images are truly mesmerizing.

  • @gnarlyandy1
    @gnarlyandy1 Před 4 lety +3

    I really enjoyed seeing the up close pictures with the electron microscope that gave us those coral reef like images. I hope you do more super close-up images in the future where it is applicable.

  • @electronicsNmore
    @electronicsNmore Před 4 lety +18

    Excellent video! Very cool images.

  • @scottbiccum6977
    @scottbiccum6977 Před 4 lety

    I am SO GRATEFUL for this video series! Its beyond simply being fascinating... Its very educational. THANK YOU for all the effort spent in creating these videos!

  • @paultrappiel9943
    @paultrappiel9943 Před 4 lety +2

    Thank you Sir Martyn for the follow up vid! Very informative and great pictures.

  • @ThieflyChap
    @ThieflyChap Před 4 lety +72

    Hmm, what about heating it in other gases, or in higher pressures?

    • @dELTA13579111315
      @dELTA13579111315 Před 4 lety +8

      I would love to see it done in higher pressure. Other gases might not change much from the vacuum test, depending on the gas. A lot of lightbulbs for example used to be made of tungsten wire in an atmosphere of argon to decrease the amount of corrosion on the wire

    • @Chriva
      @Chriva Před 4 lety +1

      Neon, molybdenum light.. mcThing would be cool :)

    • @SEELE-ONE
      @SEELE-ONE Před 4 lety +1

      Christian Ivarsson burned retinas incoming!

    • @Chriva
      @Chriva Před 4 lety +3

      Life has taught me that dangerous stuff is fun stuff. :)

    • @stanbondarev9256
      @stanbondarev9256 Před 4 lety

      Particular pressure of oxygen is crucial both for liquid drops and for beautiful eutectic microstructure. More oxygen -- more liquid and more evaporation and the wire just burns out quicker. Less oxygen leads to less or now liquid -- no drops, no eutectic.

  • @droppedpasta
    @droppedpasta Před 4 lety +10

    At about 5:08 you can see the unduloids reciprocating. My guess is it’s caused by the frequency of your AC. Is the spacing related to AC frequency? Or voltage, or current?

  • @DRKRISKENNEDY
    @DRKRISKENNEDY Před 4 lety +1

    Fantastic videos. Love the history of the element presented, the questions leading the experiment, and the wonderfully idiosyncratic personalities of each of you 🤗

  • @czernm200
    @czernm200 Před 4 lety

    Thank you! Amazing job! THANK YOU, for your time and everything needed to make this film. I appreciate it.

  • @spencerarnot
    @spencerarnot Před 4 lety +122

    Remember everyone to keep comments respectful and to follow the Community Guidelines. Molybdenum tends to stir up some pretty intense emotions. Just try to keep it together. 😉

    • @BothHands1
      @BothHands1 Před 4 lety +4

      lol no promises. I feel very strongly about Molybdenum, after all

    • @spencerarnot
      @spencerarnot Před 4 lety +3

      @Danielle Spargo 😂

    • @kellyjackson7889
      @kellyjackson7889 Před 4 lety +4

      @@BothHands1 Yes after all it's METAL!! \m/(>

    • @keirfarnum6811
      @keirfarnum6811 Před 4 lety

      Spencer Arnot
      DAMN IT! ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT MY FAVORITE ELEMENT NEGATIVELY?! I HATE YOU!!!
      😂. 😉

    • @Dracopol
      @Dracopol Před 3 lety

      Molybdenum triggers me because only Greek has words putting b right next to a d, words like "abdomen" and such.

  • @Zelmel
    @Zelmel Před 4 lety +60

    Did Niel get annoyed that his vacuum chamber is now lightly coated with molybdenum?

  • @bobthompson4319
    @bobthompson4319 Před 4 lety

    This is definitely one of the coolest video. Because you get to really hear the professor's thought process in an experiment hes not done before. AWESOME.

  • @TheHDTheater
    @TheHDTheater Před 4 lety

    I'm really glad you guys did a follow up video on the wires videos. More awesome content of course, but great to see you interact with the viewers in that sense; it was a really nice touch. Helps keep my mind stimulated after college; definitely makes me miss being surrounded by scientific minds! Thanks again.

  • @alephii
    @alephii Před 4 lety +3

    0:08 that is a really appropriate outfit for a chemistry lab!

    • @sauercrowder
      @sauercrowder Před 3 lety

      Neal can break his own rules if he wants to. Especially when the only hazards are a small piece of solid metal and electricity

  • @prsplayer210
    @prsplayer210 Před 4 lety +20

    Molybdenum is used in vacuum furnaces as heating elements for this reason.

    • @verdatum
      @verdatum Před 4 lety +3

      Does it have benefits over tungsten? I would like to learn more.

    • @mattfillmore6297
      @mattfillmore6297 Před 4 lety +2

      I used to grow synthetic sapphire and we used moly for the heating element and the crucible.

    • @PinataOblongata
      @PinataOblongata Před 4 lety

      @Desmond Bagley It's also a street name for MDMA, so could cause shenanigans 😂

  • @pmgrafael
    @pmgrafael Před 4 lety

    One of the most beautiful videos that I've seen on CZcams since I subscribed to the platform (~10 years or more).
    THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

  • @notavailable8130
    @notavailable8130 Před 4 lety

    This is my favorite family of channels on CZcams. Periodic is my favorite favorite.. you are all amazing please never stop.

  • @ComiXDude
    @ComiXDude Před 4 lety +61

    Are you using AC, or DC? i wonder if changing the frequency of the Current will change the spacing of the Moly unduloid

    • @movax20h
      @movax20h Před 4 lety +16

      They are using AC, 50Hz. On previous video they did suggest it might be related to the use of AC, vs DC. But I think it is not. Still I would really love to see them test different frequency or DC.

    • @abcdefgh-db1to
      @abcdefgh-db1to Před 4 lety +9

      I don't think it will change much, the spacing is only due to the surface tension of the liquid molybdenum oxyde and should remain unaffected by the magnetic fields because it's probably non-conductive.

    • @chris-graham
      @chris-graham Před 4 lety +6

      looks like AC varying voltage via variac

    • @EtherDais
      @EtherDais Před 4 lety +1

      @@abcdefgh-db1to You, I like your brainwaves.

    • @abcdefgh-db1to
      @abcdefgh-db1to Před 4 lety

      @@EebstertheGreat not molybdenum oxide

  • @TranceH3ad
    @TranceH3ad Před 4 lety +6

    So what are these structures on the surface of unduloids? They vaguely resemble patterns formed by a ferrofluid in a magnetic field.

  • @iainburgess8577
    @iainburgess8577 Před 2 lety +1

    Fascinating , beautiful process & episode. That slow-mo footage was so cool.
    That mobybdenum light was beautiful, that hue looked like various forms of sunlight. I wonder what the emmited light spectrum was, and if it is actually even close to sunlight.
    Neil's giving serious rock-star vibes this episode.

  • @lsporter88
    @lsporter88 Před 4 lety

    Fascinating. Videos like this one really gets the mind going. Many concepts are introduced and illustrated in a short span of time. What a great way to teach Physics and Chemistry. Thank you for your commentary Professor. Superb presentation.

  • @simonstergaard
    @simonstergaard Před 4 lety +22

    Try other frequences than 50 or 60 hz, see if the spacing changes...between the globs...in air

    • @wahconah98
      @wahconah98 Před 4 lety +2

      But you won't know for sure until you test it!

    • @SteveCooling60
      @SteveCooling60 Před 4 lety +1

      Also try DC when heating the wire in air

  • @fiallos1
    @fiallos1 Před 4 lety +6

    They need to do an extra episode on the properties of the professor’s hair.

    • @123TeeMee
      @123TeeMee Před 3 lety

      You wouldn't want to run that much current through a hair though, would smell awful

  • @joshuarosen6242
    @joshuarosen6242 Před 4 lety

    This was another excellent and stimulating video. Periodic Videos is one of my three favourite CZcams channels - you never fail to entertain and inform.

  • @metametodo
    @metametodo Před 4 lety

    This is amazing. Beautiful. I honestly got emotional over the scientific content here, the inquiry from the comments, the proof test of the liquid, imaging, the theory, hypothesis and confirmation.
    I've heard many times about the scientific method, and I know it's used over the world in many scientific experiments, but I really love to actually happen to watch this process happening spontaneously in my front, imagining your own reactions and sense of awe. It's weird how my eyes are actually moist right now. Thanks to you all.

  • @ryanl.1085
    @ryanl.1085 Před 4 lety +479

    Ah yes, Molybdenum.
    Struggling to be pronounced since 1778.

    • @Yora21
      @Yora21 Před 4 lety +19

      In German, we just call it Molybdän. Considerably easier to pronounce, if you can pronounce Ä. ;)

    • @Chriva
      @Chriva Před 4 lety +1

      @@Yora21 Å Ä Ö :D

    • @MarkHobbes
      @MarkHobbes Před 4 lety +3

      @@Yora21 In Portuguese it's Molibdênio. Pretty easy too.

    • @jarls5890
      @jarls5890 Před 4 lety +9

      @@Yora21 Norwegian says "hold my oxide": Molybden

    • @Chriva
      @Chriva Před 4 lety +1

      @@jarls5890 I expected nothing less from a neighbor lol

  • @edgeeffect
    @edgeeffect Před 4 lety +5

    0:23 Neil's wink!!!
    I was wondering about oxide with all of that smoke.
    And I know it's against lab-safety common sense... but I'd love to know what that smoke smells like.

  • @ScottTilYouDrop
    @ScottTilYouDrop Před 4 lety +1

    Love Neil's arc reactor! Great episode and investigation love this style

  • @learnmyname123
    @learnmyname123 Před 4 lety +2

    It would be fun to coil the wire like an incandescent bulb's wire, and see how bright it is at a given wattage and compare that to copper or tungsten or other "common" metals. Maybe this would make a great special usage lightbulb.

  • @micahphilson
    @micahphilson Před 4 lety +8

    Sadly missed opportunity to call this video *_"Magnificent Molybdenum"!_*

  • @harrodharrod5239
    @harrodharrod5239 Před 4 lety +5

    Neil needs more mic time!!!

  • @alxdregomes
    @alxdregomes Před 4 lety +2

    0:23 right back at you mate

  • @DeconvertedMan
    @DeconvertedMan Před 4 lety +2

    neat! wow! the structure of reality. how it looks up close, so amazing!

  • @runefjord8446
    @runefjord8446 Před 4 lety +39

    next video : "so we've put the wire in as a target for this particle accelerator..."

    • @ThePrimevalVoid
      @ThePrimevalVoid Před 4 lety +9

      i mean, very technically speaking, an electron microscope is a particle accelerator

    • @wvdh
      @wvdh Před 4 lety +1

      They are actually starting to do this. You can produce Technetium-99m with cyclotrons by irradiating Molybdenum (Mo-100 enriched molybdenum, more precisely, with a (p,2n) nuclear reaction). The Technetium-99m can than be used in nuclear medicine.

  • @Purwapada
    @Purwapada Před 4 lety +6

    .
    the molybdenum oxide in the pictures looks like it would be a great substrate for a reaction

  • @luthmhor
    @luthmhor Před 4 lety

    Really cool set of experiments, thanks for sharing!

  • @bazoo513
    @bazoo513 Před 4 lety

    An excellent demonstration of the thought process when investigating a new phenomenon (although this one was not actually new, but, as I said, this was a demonstration).
    And, as always, Neil rocks!

  • @Leukodystrophy
    @Leukodystrophy Před 4 lety +3

    Anyone else thought the thumbnail was an ice cream cone?
    Just me?
    Ok.

  • @Shadow77999
    @Shadow77999 Před 4 lety +3

    0:20 someone make that man into a meme

  • @thesage1096
    @thesage1096 Před 3 lety +1

    10:24 that wink was all i needed.

  • @michaelXXLF
    @michaelXXLF Před 4 lety

    Gotta love the arfro comb tacked to the shelf behind the prof!

  • @jeppefregerslevlundgaard7443

    Why do metals glow brighter in a vacuum?
    Is it because there is no oxide layers on the outside blocking the light?

    • @elevown
      @elevown Před 4 lety +1

      Maybe- or because a vacuum is a great insulator and the wire isn't shedding heat into the surrounding air, it gets hotter?

    • @Chriva
      @Chriva Před 4 lety +12

      I think it's more a matter of how much power can be put into the wire without it burning up.

    • @prsplayer210
      @prsplayer210 Před 4 lety

      Molybdenum in a vacuum can be used as heating elements,many industrial vaccum furnaces use it

    • @root42
      @root42 Před 4 lety +4

      Christian Ivarsson you're spot on. You can heat them much higher than with oxygen rich atmosphere. That's why incandescent lights are also filled with nobel gases or other inert gases, but not oxygen.

    • @stanbondarev9256
      @stanbondarev9256 Před 4 lety

      No, it because in vacuum or inert gas Mo can be heated up to almost melting temperature which is much higher than temperature of evaporating of forming in air molybdenum oxides. So you can force Mo to grow very bright if you heat it very fast -- faster than it will be thoroughly burned. The same is also applied for W as well and Nb less.

  • @owenmerrick2377
    @owenmerrick2377 Před 4 lety +13

    Let's hear it for surface tension in fluid streams: keeping you moderately safe while peeing on live elevated-train rails, for 150 years.

  • @ThingEngineer
    @ThingEngineer Před 3 lety +1

    Wow, I never would’ve guessed surface tension causing the artifacts, brilliant. My initial hypothesis was magnetic forces in the wire holding the liquid metal in place. But even if molybdenum’s magnetic susceptibility we’re high enough to cause this effect, I would hazard a guess that it was above its Curie temperature while in the liquid state.

  • @melody3741
    @melody3741 Před 3 lety

    To be honest i have always been afraid of getting old but this guy is out here making a new freaking discovery at like 80, and seriously that helps me so much you have no idea.

  • @bpark10001
    @bpark10001 Před 4 lety +6

    Tungsten should do the same thing as WO3 also has a lower melting point then the parent metal. Will chromium also do this?

    • @NwoDispatcher
      @NwoDispatcher Před 4 lety +1

      Pure chromium probably is too brittle to make into a wire

  • @seouljah760
    @seouljah760 Před 4 lety +3

    What motorcycle does the Stig ride? I see those boots, Neil.

  • @mrWertyuiop111
    @mrWertyuiop111 Před 4 lety

    I appreciate the follow up video it is a fascinating phenomena

  • @richardmoeller5351
    @richardmoeller5351 Před 4 lety

    Molybdenum is one of my favorite elements, I used it in lubricating a small turbojet engine and it makes very cool alloys.

  • @ItsAllGoodGames
    @ItsAllGoodGames Před 4 lety +8

    When Agent 47 retired, he moved into a university and changed his name to Neil.

  • @Widnezz
    @Widnezz Před 4 lety +4

    Does anyone know why there hasnt been a new video in a while? hope everyone is ok.

    • @manudehanoi
      @manudehanoi Před 3 lety

      covid ?

    • @Widnezz
      @Widnezz Před 3 lety

      @@manudehanoi do you see what date I made this comment? Covid wasn't a thing 0 months ago

    • @manudehanoi
      @manudehanoi Před 3 lety

      @@Widnezz you are right, sorry I tought this was a new video

  • @lumpyfishgravy
    @lumpyfishgravy Před 4 lety

    Great video! Fusing of wires is of great importance in Electrical Engineering. The undulates can be seen in blown fuses, and also in illustrations of "fuse fatigue", a phenomenon whose existence is even denied in some quarters. Fuse parameters include pre-melting and fusing integrals. Both have units of A2s (Amp squared seconds; A2s times Ohms makes Joules). The idea of fuse fatigue is a fuse stressed often enough will eventually blow. That is, the fusing integral decreases with every stress event. There is little dependable data, but much anecdotal evidence. I had an amp that ran for 15 years being switched on almost every day, then one day the fuse blew. I replaced it with the same type fuse, it worked again (it was inrush current, which has a semi-random element).

  • @AkashBG
    @AkashBG Před 4 lety +1

    Great video, very well explained as usual!

  • @rserton
    @rserton Před 4 lety +3

    I wonder if Thomas Edison tried using molybdenum as a filament in his light bulb experimentation.

    • @Purpleturtlehurtler
      @Purpleturtlehurtler Před 4 lety +2

      You mean: "I wonder if Thomas Edison's workshop employees, who actually did the work, used molybdenum in their lightbulb experimentation."

    • @vylbird8014
      @vylbird8014 Před 4 lety +1

      Probably. He brute-forced it - had his workshop team run through every filament material they could think of in the hope that they would stumble upon one that worked. Mostly they looked at different methods of manufacturing carbon filaments, but molybdenum was already in use for heating elements at the time so it would be a natural choice for testing, along with tungsten.

    • @DarkShroom
      @DarkShroom Před 2 lety

      @@vylbird8014 that's how all science is done.... you go through all the metals and try to see which works best

    • @vylbird8014
      @vylbird8014 Před 2 lety

      @@DarkShroom Edison's big innovation was this use of systematic experimentation and an organised industrial workshop. In a sense he invented the modern R&D laboratory.
      But he also cultivated the image of himself as the lone genius inventor who single-handedly created hundreds of revolutionary products, because it was a great marketing ploy.

  • @TheWildNest
    @TheWildNest Před 4 lety +3

    "How about some organic chemstry?" how about no.

  • @kensurrency2564
    @kensurrency2564 Před 3 lety

    Wow! Chemistry is so amazing. There’s always more to learn!!

  • @kevinhanley3023
    @kevinhanley3023 Před 4 lety

    Thanks to everyone involved with this one. Really enjoyed seeing unconstrained curiosity! The images were very cool.

  • @Karabetter
    @Karabetter Před 4 lety +9

    OK stop ... Maybe much of the metal that would have liquefied, sublimated away under the low pressure and went out the vacuum pump. Sooo ...
    You should run the test at atmospheric pressure, same as the original, but in inert argon gas. (Same idea as welding in argon to keep from forming oxides.)

    • @Karabetter
      @Karabetter Před 4 lety +1

      Graham Stewart Sometimes when a lab is filled with expensive equipment (like variable pressure chambers) the less expensive options get overlooked ;) .

    • @Karabetter
      @Karabetter Před 4 lety +1

      One additional reason to use an inert (argon) gas: Because it only changes ONE variable and directly addresses the theory of oxidation. I feel a vacuum in itself can cause huge physical behavioral changes. And this suggestion is cheap, don't need to build a particle accelerator for it. ;)

  • @VA7SL
    @VA7SL Před 4 lety +4

    Not a video about Molly

  • @Wiejeben
    @Wiejeben Před 4 lety

    Thanks for the follow up, really interesting and inspirational!

  • @bentboybbz
    @bentboybbz Před 3 lety

    Honestly when i hear him i turn my volume up to max because he either does or watches it being done and shows what happens in their environment talks about the important information and records it well.

  • @AxcelleratorT
    @AxcelleratorT Před 4 lety +3

    I CALLED IT!!! Molybdenum trioxide! Go back and see my comment on the original video!

  • @adamkeist5817
    @adamkeist5817 Před 4 lety +3

    It's been like a minute and only 3 views? Wow...

  • @mikeconnery4652
    @mikeconnery4652 Před rokem

    Love the music. Also, the droplets may have surface tension that would make them form into droplets. They also say that electricity travels on the outside of the wire, so the heat could be higher on the outside. Absolutely excellent video.

  • @Xirpzy
    @Xirpzy Před 4 lety

    Amazing experiments. Incredible pictures as well!