SafeFlame project successfully built safe welding equipment

Recently, a mobile welding machine capable of creating fire from water has been successfully built in SafeFlame project implemented by European scientists. This is a new generation water electrolysis system with much cheaper manufacturing costs than before. At the same time, with high safety, this technique opens up the prospect of exploiting clean and safe energy from the water electrolysis process to apply to industries, especially welding industry, to replace for the use of previous oxy-acetylene flame.

Project researcher, technology engineer Andrew Ellis said: "Simply put, this is a system of electrolysis machines operated by the input of electricity and water. Water will split into Hydrogen and Oxygen gas, then just put in the ignition will have a fire enough to iron or any other technological application, basically, this is a machine that turns water into fire ".

Previously, the use of electrolytic equipment was limited due to manufacturing costs. A standard electrolytic device requires specialized filters and catalysts such as platinum or some other precious metals. Therefore, researchers want to make this technology more affordable to be widely available on an industrial scale.

Andrew Ellis adds: "Our team of chemists has developed a new filter formulation to increase the efficiency of electrolysis. At the same time, we have done a lot of research. In terms of electrolyte catalysts, to find ways to reduce the amount of platinum and replace it with other cheaper materials but still ensure performance, and finally, we were able to cut a large amount manufacturing cost for electrolysis system ".

In the new generation water electrolysis system , Oxygen and Hidro after separation will be recombined at the output and form a "cool" flame and are easier to control. Compared to the past, industrial fires often use oxygen in the air to burn propane or acetylene. For the new system, hydrogen and oxygen are all created and utilized to the maximum, so a large amount of fuel costs can be cut.

Welding technology consultant Rory Olney said: "You can see that the flame from this device is much" cooler "than the previous oxy-acetylene flames, because the nozzle head is not In addition, there is no dazzling light at the nozzle head to limit the bad effect of the welding process on the human eye, now we only need to wear a normal glass without need specialized eye protection devices ".

In addition, the previous welding technology always comes with acetylene containers, this tool is not safe and has a high probability of explosion. Some places even banned the use of acetylene welding technology due to the low safety. Besides, the acetylene flame needs to be very careful when handling sensitive metals, typically aluminum.

In addition to solving the above problems, the hydrogen flame is also shown to be a cleaner, more environmentally friendly method since the materials from input to output are completely water. According to material scientist Nick Ludford, compared to the acetylene burning method still commonly used in the welding industry, hydrogen from water electrolysis can reduce costs by 20 times. At the same time, the new method also does not need to cost more to preserve, store and transport fuel to operate.

As expected in the near future, this technique will attract great interest from small and medium enterprises when the first systems are officially commercialized. Currently, this advanced electrolysis system is being thoroughly inspected by welding experts in the UK. According to the researchers, this is a breakthrough that not only creates a safe and cleaner welding flame method but can also be applied to many other industries in the near future.