Doing these projects in my parents' basement as a kid was such a formative experience. Much gratitude for the positive educational impact you've had on people like me.
He could make it a lot better if he took what he had, selected a seed, and recrystallized around it in an insulated container. That will give him bigger, more perfect and more pure crystals to facet.
@@AtlasReburdened Also, crystallization seems to have happened too quickly. The liquid was too concentrated. Would be better to dilute it, dangle in a seed, and let it evaporate slowly over a few days. Also, use distilled water to minimize contamination. Metal salts in tap water will totally ruin the crystal structure.
@@rich1051414 Indeed, I suggested an insulated container to slow the process, but it would probably be easier to go your route and just start with a lower concentration. Also yes, distilled for sure. Personally, I would take water from a freshly serviced Glacier refill machine(because I've tested a few and when they're freshly serviced they put out 4PPM water) and run it through a clean, ungreased, glass distillation rig with a heated(but obviously not to boiling) receiving flask. That should give the purest water anyone can have access to outside of a lab that specializes in 0PPM, dielectric grade water. At that point, it would probably be wise to do the crystallization in a container that's capped with a fresh carbon filter to prevent airborne volitiles from absorbing into the water.
That is close to one of the coolest things I've seen in a long time. I would think that to make a contact microphone you would need to start by being able to cut a really thin slice from the crystal and give it a really high polish.
Thanks Colin that was great, my kids will love it and I can use it to teach them about Pierre and Jacques Curie the discoverers of the piezoelectric effect.
Yes. That's the whole reason for watching; I want to homebrew a piezo pickup for a guitar with nylon strings. That big crystal seems a bit awkward for that purpose.
@@biggreentruck4907 you wouldn't need more than a strip of that. Generally piezos will go in the same slot as your bridge on a nylon. A little stick of it would work.
Wow, That's cool, I made some crystals years ago, but the recipe instructions said to hang lengths of thread, and the crystals grew on the treads, "IT WORKED" But the way you Show it here is Much better & easier too I think, & I am going to give it a go. thanks. Thom in Scotland.
The oilfield used Piezoelectric crystals in their tools to pick up Gamma Rays given off by the formation. Depending on the type of formation, it gives off different signatures. Limestone/Dolomite gives off a very LOW count even lower than what you would find in the Background radiation at surface = +/- 30 counts per second[API]. Whereas sand is typically between 30 - 45 counts, and shale is much higher 65 + counts. The crystal glows when hit with the gamma rays, and the light is measured.
If you added an ac current would that cause the crystal to change shape or vibrate? Also while its cooling do you think if you exposed it to a sound frequency it would crystallize into different patterns?
Whenever I watch Collins videos I'm just like "Huuuh, Duh I didn't get it" but he does make good things and thats where Kipkay comes because his projects are fun to do and easy to make!
I have an ultrasonic cell disruptor. In the manual they tell you that the frequency of the horn, has to match the frequency coming from the power supply. They are set by the manufacturer. If they do not match, they say that the power supply will fail. I am wondering what determines the frequency of the piezoelectric crystal inside the transducer horn? Does the geometry and size of the crystal determine it?
It's the size and shape determining the resonant frequency. Much like the size of a crystal oscillator determines it's frequency. Not sure about the damaging power supply part. Maybe drawing too much current if it's not close to resonant?
Looks like the output consists of complex transient currents. Impulse and oscillating dampening waveforms. This is not necessarily an A.C voltage as the impulse wave does not oscillate back and forth, but rather pulses in one direcrion; more similair to a d.c output. This makes me think that a piezoelectric crystal could be used in place of a spark gap or vacuum tube if someone was to build say a tesla hairpin circuit, or some kind of mechanical analog to that.
It works just like a regular speaker, but instead of using the movement of an electromagnet through a permanent magnet to move the diaphragm, it uses the changes in size of the piezo crystal
Seal it between two thin resilient surfaces (conductive) before it dries. The disk piezo uses a similar method where the crystal forms after the disk is sealed.
hi colin! if these crystals can create a voltage/charge, would be also able to charge electrical appliances with these? Or is the power output too small?? thanks!
Cooling of the hot saturated solution produces crystals very quickly, but they have much defects. If you re-dissolve these crystals in pure water and them let it evaporate slowly, that's what you can get: plus.google.com/photos/116542359168957860292/albums/6071596141873389857
Beautiful crystals, I haven't messed with Rochelle salt since my main thing is growing large Monoammonium Phosphate crystal clusters. www.pinterest.com/bartlett1710/ I started around April of this year and my oldest crystal now weighs a lot and the individual crystals are an inch across. I just had to move it into a five gallon bucket because the side crystals had grown flat against the 2.5 gallon bucket. I have grown large batches of single Copper Sulfate crystals as well as large clusters that only look nice because I glued clusters together before letting them grow together. I am having a big problem with what I thought would be the most beautiful specimen: a sphere with crystals growing outwards. I believe the fluid dynamics of the way the crystals grow on the sphere is interfering with it's progress. I had used a matrix of compressed rock with a hole drilled through so it could be supported on a stand. I then made a device using a simple coat hanger that has the specimen rotated 90 degrees so it is horizontal and free turning so (in theory) as the crystal growth on top gets heavier it will turn allowing the rest of the crystal equal time on top. Your crystals are beautiful so you must be good at what you do. I am having a large problem getting my specimen to 1. grow equally 2. get any larger than 3-4 inches in diameter and need a little help.
Konichi Wawa My crystals are small, I have never grew any bigger than 5 cm. But, as far as I know, one of the methods for growing big crystals involves artificial circulation of the solution. There are different ways to do it: rotate the crystal, teether the growing tank etc. Here, they use rotation: th-cam.com/video/l_USYub3djY/w-d-xo.html
Maybe you could hook the crystal up to a transformer/regulator to boost the voltage with a diode in between. This seems like it would up the voltage, and thusly sensitivity, of the piezo.
i have a request for you please make a video on LDR and explain it like you explain in make present the multi meter,make present the ohm law etc ok thanks.
Very informative and easy to follow! Why don´t you cast the liquid into a diamond or crystal shaped form and let the whole batch become one large solid crystal?
Thanks for the demo. Have you tested any of these Rochelle salt crystals to see if they change shape/deform when voltage is applied? I would be very interested in knowing if it does, and to what degree. Thanks.
It converts physical pressure into electrical pressure, aka voltage. How do you convert voltage into watts/amps? It would be interesting to see how much energy could be captured from the vibrations of a generator, it could technically improve efficiency by capturing all wasted energy. Maybe combine that with thermocouples and capture the wasted heat energy.
@themvp007 - you'll find one as the on-board speaker on at least some modern PC mother-boards. The crystals have a natural resonant frequency too, and just like ringing a bell, the larger the crystal the lower that resonant frequency is. Other crystals can also work. They also put out a voltage just from pressure. Squeeze it with a pair of pliers (not too hard now). This electro-/mechanical effect may explain the strange behavior of animals and rainbows before an earth-quake.
WOW! thank you very much, im making a DIY drum set and drum module, and ive been experimenting with piezos alot, so i can recieve cool and weird signals to convert into sound, this homebrew piezos crystals gave me tons of ideas to work with, btw: if you apply electricity to the crystal does it make a sound o vibration?
If you can't find soda ash check the craft section at a local big box store I know walmart has fabric dye that is mostly soda ash also this is the easy way to make colored crystals.
WHAT IF. when letting it dry overnight. you allow it to dry inside an electric field? will it somehow change the orientation of how the crystal will be formed?
I made the solution just as done here, and it didn't create crystals overnight. I've seen other people make these, and they said it took over two weeks for the liquid to evaporate and retrieved the crystals at that point. I'll just keep mine in the dark for a few days.
Hi im getting crystal like gunk that is soft forming in the heated solution prematurely(before solution turns clear, and doesnt fizzle) which turns into white paste upon cooling when extracted. Any idea what it is? Does it interfere?
1. can u cut them to a certain shape when they're done? 2. how big can u make them? 3. how much power can they produce? most piezo ive screwed around with only get miliwatts when i hit them 4. this is AWESOME!!!
Just throwing a thought out here. Will the crystal melt under heat? if so couldn't you put it in a kiln and re-composite it onto a metal disk? Just a thought, That's how ceramic is made right?
How many ml of water do you use? and do you try to retain the temperature of 180 °F by heating the water constantly ? or do you discontinue the heat supply when it has reached the mark of 180 ° F? Thanks :)
Maybe and yes. The maybe being that the output voltage would not be as consistent because it would be as if you were hitting multiple crystals at the same time. it would produce a noisy signal. But for pure asthetics, yes it would work great for that.
Collin, Do you think its possible to build an oscillator using Rochelle salt? Typically quartz is used for crystal oscillator circuits in radios however for "cooking" crystals in the kitchen quartz would be very difficult. Regards, Evan W.
Yes, you can build an oscillator with rochelle salts (using the crystal as a resonator). So certain piezo discs have 3 terminals, the third being a sort of feedback terminal. A transistor and 3 resistors is used to construct a working oscillator. This style of oscillator is at the core of those self contained beeper modules.
@mastigoz Applying a dc voltage won't create a sound it will just deform it slightly, but applying an ac voltage like the one in musical signals will vibrate it and create sound similar to a speaker...
if one was to attempt to cut paper thin sheets of rochel salts, would said person be shocked by the emited ac voltage? Also can these crystals be stacked, would current be able to travel through a crystal into the next crystal then to ground?
Doing these projects in my parents' basement as a kid was such a formative experience. Much gratitude for the positive educational impact you've had on people like me.
With some careful cutting, grinding, and polishing along it's crystalline axis, you can both increase usable surface area and tune frequency
thank you for this
He could make it a lot better if he took what he had, selected a seed, and recrystallized around it in an insulated container. That will give him bigger, more perfect and more pure crystals to facet.
@@AtlasReburdened Also, crystallization seems to have happened too quickly. The liquid was too concentrated. Would be better to dilute it, dangle in a seed, and let it evaporate slowly over a few days. Also, use distilled water to minimize contamination. Metal salts in tap water will totally ruin the crystal structure.
@@rich1051414 Indeed, I suggested an insulated container to slow the process, but it would probably be easier to go your route and just start with a lower concentration. Also yes, distilled for sure. Personally, I would take water from a freshly serviced Glacier refill machine(because I've tested a few and when they're freshly serviced they put out 4PPM water) and run it through a clean, ungreased, glass distillation rig with a heated(but obviously not to boiling) receiving flask. That should give the purest water anyone can have access to outside of a lab that specializes in 0PPM, dielectric grade water.
At that point, it would probably be wise to do the crystallization in a container that's capped with a fresh carbon filter to prevent airborne volitiles from absorbing into the water.
Thank you guys that helped me a lot. @Zeek is it possible to cut multiple Piezo Crystals out of a very big one?
That is so cool. It's absolutely incredible how hard and smooth the surfaces are, it's like something manmade
That is close to one of the coolest things I've seen in a long time. I would think that to make a contact microphone you would need to start by being able to cut a really thin slice from the crystal and give it a really high polish.
Dude - you're a legend. This was as good as when you made an homebrew LED.
he made a WHAT
Just when I thought I have seen all the Collin's Lab videos I find this one. Better late than never. I miss this series of videos.
Thanks Colin that was great, my kids will love it and I can use it to teach them about Pierre and Jacques Curie the discoverers of the piezoelectric effect.
Hehe I like your collection of PCB masks on the wall
just bought the ingredients after over two years of first watching it
How's that crystal you made 5 years ago working out?
@@Phelan666
Interested to know
What voltage are you producing? I have an experimental design that I want to test but I need a fair amount of voltage to make it work.
You should've tried inputting a signal to see if it makes any sound
umer salim I was anticipating him doing that too.
Yes. That's the whole reason for watching; I want to homebrew a piezo pickup for a guitar with nylon strings.
That big crystal seems a bit awkward for that purpose.
Then make it smolah
@@biggreentruck4907 you wouldn't need more than a strip of that. Generally piezos will go in the same slot as your bridge on a nylon. A little stick of it would work.
It should work but usually you might need an amplifier circuit depending on the amount of electricity generated
Thank you for your amazingly detailed uber nerdy video. I will be making my own piezo crystals tomorrow for a demonstration!
Collin! so glad I finally found this series! pondering Piezo for an idea I am working on!!
Wow, That's cool, I made some crystals years ago, but the recipe instructions said to hang lengths of thread, and the crystals grew on the treads, "IT WORKED" But the way you Show it here is Much better & easier too I think, & I am going to give it a go. thanks.
Thom in Scotland.
I have made some great trigger circuits recently using piezos. i love them.
that was awsome, who would have know piezo's are so easily made, best vid I have seen in a long time
Collin and kipkay are the best of make
Thanks by the lessons, Collin!
Bravo!
very cool crystals .. are they water soluble or somewhat stable ??
Colin's videos are great.
The oilfield used Piezoelectric crystals in their tools to pick up Gamma Rays given off by the formation. Depending on the type of formation, it gives off different signatures. Limestone/Dolomite gives off a very LOW count even lower than what you would find in the Background radiation at surface = +/- 30 counts per second[API]. Whereas sand is typically between 30 - 45 counts, and shale is much higher 65 + counts. The crystal glows when hit with the gamma rays, and the light is measured.
If you added an ac current would that cause the crystal to change shape or vibrate? Also while its cooling do you think if you exposed it to a sound frequency it would crystallize into different patterns?
Whenever I watch Collins videos I'm just like "Huuuh, Duh I didn't get it" but he does make good things and thats where Kipkay comes because his projects are fun to do and easy to make!
I have an ultrasonic cell disruptor. In the manual they tell you that the frequency of the horn, has to match the frequency coming from the power supply. They are set by the manufacturer. If they do not match, they say that the power supply will fail. I am wondering what determines the frequency of the piezoelectric crystal inside the transducer horn? Does the geometry and size of the crystal determine it?
It's the size and shape determining the resonant frequency. Much like the size of a crystal oscillator determines it's frequency. Not sure about the damaging power supply part. Maybe drawing too much current if it's not close to resonant?
Looks like the output consists of complex transient currents. Impulse and oscillating dampening waveforms. This is not necessarily an A.C voltage as the impulse wave does not oscillate back and forth, but rather pulses in one direcrion; more similair to a d.c output. This makes me think that a piezoelectric crystal could be used in place of a spark gap or vacuum tube if someone was to build say a tesla hairpin circuit, or some kind of mechanical analog to that.
As a guitar playing chemistry student I was very entertained by this video
What is that special ceramic? Let crystal cool between metal contacts for later.
Awesome! I'm making this just for the crystals, they look great!
have you tried to produce sound with the crystal by applying electricity to it? does it work?
It works just like a regular speaker, but instead of using the movement of an electromagnet through a permanent magnet to move the diaphragm, it uses the changes in size of the piezo crystal
Seal it between two thin resilient surfaces (conductive) before it dries. The disk piezo uses a similar method where the crystal forms after the disk is sealed.
hi colin! if these crystals can create a voltage/charge, would be also able to charge electrical appliances with these? Or is the power output too small?? thanks!
To make the contact mic, the crystal would have to be touching your thought so it can get the vibrations from your voicebox
Great job Collin, thank you for sharing this knowledge, Is it possible to grind it ? Should I take the orientation of the Crystal Latis into a count?
Sequel please!
Next: Home made contact microphone!
I wonder if I can cause impurities to make different varieties of Piezoelectric Lattice
Collin is the reason i live to come home every day... lol okay, that may be a bit far, but he is awesome!!
I left the computer for a few seconds and when I came back you were cooking tartar sauce. WTF lol
Cooling of the hot saturated solution produces crystals very quickly, but they have much defects.
If you re-dissolve these crystals in pure water and them let it evaporate slowly, that's what you can get:
plus.google.com/photos/116542359168957860292/albums/6071596141873389857
Beautiful crystals, I haven't messed with Rochelle salt since my main thing is growing large Monoammonium Phosphate crystal clusters.
www.pinterest.com/bartlett1710/
I started around April of this year and my oldest crystal now weighs a lot and the individual crystals are an inch across. I just had to move it into a five gallon bucket because the side crystals had grown flat against the 2.5 gallon bucket. I have grown large batches of single Copper Sulfate crystals as well as large clusters that only look nice because I glued clusters together before letting them grow together. I am having a big problem with what I thought would be the most beautiful specimen: a sphere with crystals growing outwards. I believe the fluid dynamics of the way the crystals grow on the sphere is interfering with it's progress. I had used a matrix of compressed rock with a hole drilled through so it could be supported on a stand. I then made a device using a simple coat hanger that has the specimen rotated 90 degrees so it is horizontal and free turning so (in theory) as the crystal growth on top gets heavier it will turn allowing the rest of the crystal equal time on top. Your crystals are beautiful so you must be good at what you do. I am having a large problem getting my specimen to 1. grow equally 2. get any larger than 3-4 inches in diameter and need a little help.
Konichi Wawa My crystals are small, I have never grew any bigger than 5 cm. But, as far as I know, one of the methods for growing big crystals involves artificial circulation of the solution. There are different ways to do it: rotate the crystal, teether the growing tank etc.
Here, they use rotation: th-cam.com/video/l_USYub3djY/w-d-xo.html
Dmitry Shintyakov how can I grow diamonds?
Toki Loki you can't unfortunately
Dmitry Shintyakov Any thoughts on growing crystals in a mold?
Wondering if you combine that with cymatics while the crystals form, what kind of effect it might have.
If you or anyone has the set up to try this, I would greatly enjoy to hear the results!!
Maybe you could hook the crystal up to a transformer/regulator to boost the voltage with a diode in between. This seems like it would up the voltage, and thusly sensitivity, of the piezo.
i have a request for you please make a video on LDR and explain it like you explain in make present the multi meter,make present the ohm law etc ok thanks.
Very informative and easy to follow! Why don´t you cast the liquid into a diamond or crystal shaped form and let the whole batch become one large solid crystal?
Nice - demo. Sorry haven't watched the full vid but would the crystals dissolve in water ?
Thanks for the demo. Have you tested any of these Rochelle salt crystals to see if they change shape/deform when voltage is applied? I would be very interested in knowing if it does, and to what degree. Thanks.
It appears that Rochelle salt has a melting point of 75 degrees Celsius so you could hypothetically shape it into pretty much whatever you want to
It converts physical pressure into electrical pressure, aka voltage. How do you convert voltage into watts/amps? It would be interesting to see how much energy could be captured from the vibrations of a generator, it could technically improve efficiency by capturing all wasted energy. Maybe combine that with thermocouples and capture the wasted heat energy.
@themvp007 - you'll find one as the on-board speaker on at least some modern PC mother-boards. The crystals have a natural resonant frequency too, and just like ringing a bell, the larger the crystal the lower that resonant frequency is. Other crystals can also work.
They also put out a voltage just from pressure. Squeeze it with a pair of pliers (not too hard now). This electro-/mechanical effect may explain the strange behavior of animals and rainbows before an earth-quake.
Collin should start his own channel. It would be awesome!
does the crystals break easily?... :o
Sir thanks and i wanted to ask one thing that does the tendency stays the same if u crush it into pieces ??
No..as large vibration produce from large groups of crystal atoms and it will be very hard to put mechanical force on large no of pieces....
are the cristals hard to break?I want to make some :D
@tiagofumo with such videos you understand more of the way basic things work... so they're pretty helpful
WOW! thank you very much, im making a DIY drum set and drum module, and ive been experimenting with piezos alot, so i can recieve cool and weird signals to convert into sound, this homebrew piezos crystals gave me tons of ideas to work with,
btw: if you apply electricity to the crystal does it make a sound o vibration?
how much pressure can a piezoelectric crystal can handle ??
If you can't find soda ash check the craft section at a local big box store I know walmart has fabric dye that is mostly soda ash also this is the easy way to make colored crystals.
in metric units it´s about 2dl of cream of tartar in the same amount of water and 177 degrees Fahrenheit is about 80 degrees celsus
Thanks, does the crystal make more power the bigger it is???
If i add super thin layer of this crystal before It's Frozen on a piece of Round metal plate, would it sounding louder?
Amazing! Collin's videos are always good!!
WHAT IF. when letting it dry overnight. you allow it to dry inside an electric field? will it somehow change the orientation of how the crystal will be formed?
PLEASE respond:
How fragile are the crystals?
Can i drill a hole through them and make a cool electrical necklace?
thanks
Great video would you consider a video on ceramic pezio electric crystal? How do they work and made?
Now with these crystals, Would it be possible to hook them up in some way to be able to make a pick up or whatever for an electric drum set?
How resistant are these crystals? I mean, is it as hard to brake as a piece of glass? Will they deteriorate with time?
Question: Can I powderized it and make a disk? TIA
Now make's projects are becoming smarter and smarter :) neat video.
Were you able to make a mic out of the crystals?
You might be able to but it will sound like shit
This was awesome. My nerd antennae so excited to make this.
My junkie antennae so excited to smoke this 💨
I made the solution just as done here, and it didn't create crystals overnight. I've seen other people make these, and they said it took over two weeks for the liquid to evaporate and retrieved the crystals at that point. I'll just keep mine in the dark for a few days.
i think ill do it just for the awesome lookin' crystals!
his are fake if you look at ALL the other people doing it , theirs are small so he seems to be the Only one than can or can he?
@@emilee172 maybe he just dedicated more time to it
@@emilee172 you just proved your ignorance
Hi im getting crystal like gunk that is soft forming in the heated solution prematurely(before solution turns clear, and doesnt fizzle) which turns into white paste upon cooling when extracted. Any idea what it is? Does it interfere?
Could this be used as a detector in a crystal radio?
Could you use these crystals to produce a spark, such as the ones from piezo igniters.
1. can u cut them to a certain shape when they're done?
2. how big can u make them?
3. how much power can they produce? most piezo ive screwed around with only get miliwatts when i hit them
4. this is AWESOME!!!
Pretty cool Collin !
Just throwing a thought out here. Will the crystal melt under heat? if so couldn't you put it in a kiln and re-composite it onto a metal disk? Just a thought, That's how ceramic is made right?
Quick question would this work better by pouring the solution into a mold?
How do you use it now? Can you crush up the crystal and seal it between 2 metal pads to make your own piezo pickup?
Hmm, will the solution keep bubbling at all after it turns clear? And what exactly is it about it's structure that makes it kick out a voltage?
Odd, question, does this salt redissolve in water?
Great explanation
Beautiful crystals!
does putting dye or food coloring on the piezo mixture do anything bad? i have a great idea to make a crystal sculpture out of this
How many ml of water do you use? and do you try to retain the temperature of 180 °F by heating the water constantly ? or do you discontinue the heat supply when it has reached the mark of 180 ° F? Thanks :)
I am wandering how big can you grow those crystals?
Is there anything you could use besides the soda ash?
Maybe and yes.
The maybe being that the output voltage would not be as consistent because it would be as if you were hitting multiple crystals at the same time. it would produce a noisy signal.
But for pure asthetics, yes it would work great for that.
Hey Colin that's great, but guys, where do I find this Especial ceramic piezoelectric?
Collin,
Do you think its possible to build an oscillator using Rochelle salt? Typically quartz is used for crystal oscillator circuits in radios however for "cooking" crystals in the kitchen quartz would be very difficult.
Regards,
Evan W.
Yes, you can build an oscillator with rochelle salts (using the crystal as a resonator). So certain piezo discs have 3 terminals, the third being a sort of feedback terminal. A transistor and 3 resistors is used to construct a working oscillator. This style of oscillator is at the core of those self contained beeper modules.
Thanks for the great video I'll have to give it a try
Hi. The weather is a bit hot in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Donyou think i showld put the mix in the fridge?
Collin's Labs are the best! Has Make thought about making some sort of Chem Lab videos? Something "Golden Book of Chemistry"-like?
can the liquid form be put into a mold, to make molded crystals, possibly in PVC tubing to get a rounded shape?
how would you make the crystals bigger? would soaking them in the same solution you used to make them work?
nice video, can i get a piezoelectric transducer inside the loudspeaker?
@mastigoz Applying a dc voltage won't create a sound it will just deform it slightly, but applying an ac voltage like the one in musical signals will vibrate it and create sound similar to a speaker...
by the way if you apply heat to sodium bicarbonate you get sodium carbonate and it is very useful if you cannot find any soda ash
wow, thanks so much for the video. This is exactly what I'm looking for my project...
Is it possible to generate enough electricity to light up a LED using the crystals? Connecting them in series or with some capacitors?
Yup
if one was to attempt to cut paper thin sheets of rochel salts, would said person be shocked by the emited ac voltage? Also can these crystals be stacked, would current be able to travel through a crystal into the next crystal then to ground?