TU Graz researchers with the Wetsus research center in The Netherlands have managed to produce electrically charged water by means of a floating water bridge. The “water bridge” phenomenon was discovered in the 19th century and simply sank into a forgotten oblivion.

The researchers at TU Graz, rediscovered the “water bridge” phenomenon in 2007. They have found when extremely pure water, in other words water that has been distilled many times, is placed in two beakers and subjected to a high voltage, the fluid moves up the side of each beaker and forms a floating water bridge between the two vessels.

The water bridge pictured is formed under the influence of a high-voltage electrical field of about 15kV. It spans about 1 cm across two Teflon beakers, each filled with deionised water. Image Credit: © Woisetschläger/Fuchs - TU Graz.

The water bridge pictured is formed under the influence of a high-voltage electrical field of about 15kV. It spans about 1 cm across two Teflon beakers, each filled with deionised water. Image Credit: © Woisetschläger/Fuchs – TU Graz.  Click image for the largest view.

The water making up this bridge flows in both directions and is in a completely new state with its own special properties of density and structure. The research group of TU Graz and the Wetsus research center can now demonstrate that this floating water bridge produces electrically charged water and stores the charge at least for a short time.

Now things get very very different.

The water is not electronically charged, rather it is protonically charged. This novel kind of water is either positively or negatively charged depending on whether it contains more or fewer protons. The study shows that in anodic water, water with a positive charge, the protons are formed in the context of the occurring electrolysis. These hydrogen nuclei flow through the water bridge into the cathodic water of the other beaker, which has a negative charge, and are neutralized there by hydroxyl ions. Since the protons move at a finite speed, there is always an excess of protons in one water container and a lack of protons in the other.

If the water bridge is suddenly powered down, the proton charges remain, as can be measured by means of impedance spectroscopy. The first investigations have shown that the fluid’s charge remains stable for one week.

The potential is just being thought through past only storage of an electric charge like a battery. There’s a realization that such water bridges can be used as electrochemical or biochemical reactors opening up a variety of possible industrial applications. Substances can be brought into contact with other materials in the water bridge for the purpose of chemical reactions, and acids and alkalis can be produced without any opposing ions – without acid and alkaline water. This opens the way to especially eco-friendly cleaning agents, reduced waste from chemical processes, and new possibilities for medical applications.

The team’s paper, A Floating Water Bridge Produces Water With Excess Charge has been published in the Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics.

These are the most interesting news posts. Its a wholly new idea, newly born, fraught with innovative, inventive and creative potential. There is a good prospect of completely new developments and insights. Congratulations to the TU Graz and Wetsus folks, thanks for the new technology to follow!


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