Water: The Fountain of Youth - Peter Wothers' 2012 Christmas Lectures 2/3
Water is essential to life since every reaction in our bodies takes place in it. But why is water so special? And can we tap into the energy released when a lit splint is added to a mix of hydrogen and water, to create an environmentally friendly solution to our energy problems?Plants have the ability to reverse this reaction by using the energy from sunlight to release oxygen from water. We are starting to learn how to do the same
We also look at the salts contained in water. Once again we will see the startling difference between a compound and its constituent elements.
Take sodium chloride – aka table salt. Sodium is a soft silvery metal that explodes with water; chlorine a deadly poisonous, choking green gas. Both elements are lethal to us, but after they have met, a dramatic change takes place. The sodium and chloride ions that form are essential components in our bodies. They help generate the electrical impulses that make our brains and nerves work.
About the 2012 CHRISTMAS LECTURES
When medieval alchemists staged spectacular stunts in front of royalty they never revealed the secrets of their mystical potions and fire-breathing creations. Today's chemists can perform equally impressive feats, but they do so to explain and explore the extreme frontiers of our material world.
Watch Peter Wothers, the modern alchemist, as he unpicks the chemistry of the world around us - looking at air, water and earth - three of the original ancient Greek 'elements' that tantalised alchemists for centuries.
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Chapters 👇
00:00 – The Search for the Fountain of Youth 💧
Juan Ponce de León, legend, and testing the “miracle” water.
03:40 – Is Water Really an Element? (Hydrogen Explosion Demo 🔥)
Making water from hydrogen and oxygen.
08:30 – Supercooled Water at -3°C (Instant Ice Reaction)
Why freezing releases heat.
12:45 – How Chemical Bonds Release Energy (Hand Warmer Demo)
Why forming bonds gives off heat.
15:30 – Hydrogen Fuel Cells & The Energy of the Future ⚡
Can water power vehicles?
20:00 – Splitting Water with Electricity (Electrolysis Explained)
Why you get twice as much hydrogen as oxygen.
25:30 – Using Light to Split Water (Photocatalyst Breakthrough)
Sodium tantalate, lanthanum & solar hydrogen.
29:30 – What’s Really in Drinking Water? (Spectroscopy Reveals All)
Calcium, sodium, and discovering elements in water.
33:30 – Alkali Metals vs Water (Sodium Explosion 💥)
Why reactive metals explode in water.
38:00 – The Most Reactive Metal: Cesium in Air
Why reactivity increases down Group 1.
41:30 – Chlorine, Salt & The Birth of Chemistry
Humphry Davy, sodium + chlorine → table salt.
46:00 – The Most Violent Reaction: Cesium + Fluorine 🔥
The most reactive metal meets the most reactive non-metal.
50:00 – Why the Dead Sea Makes Things Float 🌊
Salt density and floating metal.
53:30 – Water, Decay & 800-Year-Old Preservation
Why removing water stops chemical reactions.
56:30 – Half a Kilometer of Hydrogen: The Explosive Finale 💦
Synthesizing water for the entire audience.
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