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http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
Step 4: Belt
A longer belt causes a larger charge separation which means a higher voltage will result at the collector. Turning three rubber bands into one long rubber band is easy with a pair of scissors and super glue. Brand new rubber bands are a bit stiff, so stretch them out to loosen them up. Now cut each rubber band. Try to make a very straight cut, so that when you glue the ends together they will make good contact. Place a drop of super glue on a piece of paper and spread it around with a toothpick. Now dip the end of one rubber band in the glue and adjoin it to the end of another rubber band. Don't overlap the edges; you want to directly affix one cut end to the other. Also don't use too much glue; you don't want a glue bond, you want the glue to heat the edges of the rubber bands so that they fuse together. Hold the edges together for around 10 seconds and don't stretch it for 30 seconds. A proper bond can be stretched quite far, much further than required for the VDG. Repeat, until you've made one large rubber band, minding not to twist it. Tips Too little glue is better than too much. Even if the bond doesn't occur along the entire edge, you can still see what the proper bond should look like before trying again. Don't be afraid to mess up. The bound sets quickly, so you know right away whether the result is any good, and if it's not just trim the ends and try again. You should use brand new rubber bands; old dirty rubber bands aren't worth the trouble.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
can opener is much safer and leaves fewer sharp edges. Use a paper napkin to keep the wheel with teeth from puncturing the can. The can opener should be used like scissors to remove the lid; don't twist. The collector's support is made from a Gatorade or similar bottle. Trace the circumference of a piece of PVC onto the bottles lid. Remove the material from the lid within the circle. Place the aluminum can onto the bottle and trace a circle around the bottle where its neck meets the can. Cut the neck off the bottle using the line as reference. Don't cut exactly on the line, but leave a little excess, which can be trimmed away later if necessary. Screw the lid back onto the neck of the bottle and insert it onto the column starting from the bottom.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
Step 8: FUN
Turn off the lights. Observe corona discharge by pointing a finger at the collector; the tip of your finger should have a blue glow. Hold the back of your hand near the bottle lid to cause brush discharge. This will look like lots of little lightning bolts. Draw a spark from the collector by moving one of your second knuckles towards the collector. If you've got your VDG working well you should be able to draw sparks a little over an inch long. Since dielectric breakdown of air is approximately 84kV/in (33kV/cm) this tells us the collector voltage is around 84 kV! Tape a needle to the the top of the collector and hold you're hand over the tip of the needle. You should feel a cool breeze. This is called ionic wind.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
Ring Franklin's bells. I like to set up Franklin's bells without a grounding wire; normally the can on the right in the video below would be grounded. Without the grounding wire the tab/clapper transfers charge between the cans until both cans are at the same voltage as the VDG. Then one can turn off the VDG, set it aside, and then discharge the second can; lo and behold, the bells start ringing again as if by magic.
Cause an incandescent light bulb to flash a violet-blue. A burnt out bulb works fine. Cover the glass with some clear tape to prevent shattering if the glass breaks.
Bend a thin stream of water. Deflect soap bubbles. Light a small neon bulb. Stick paper to a wall. Levitate Fun Fly Stick fliers. Check out Prof. Bunsen's Fun Fly Stick video for various demostrations of a handheld VDG's powers.
Bill Beaty's website describes some other interesting VDG stunts. _NOT FUN _ Giving a shock to someone who isn't expecting it sounds like good fun, but it's a bad idea. Though the current and pain will be minimal, the surprise of the shock could cause a person to jump back reflexively and hurt themselves. It's also possible you could destroy an expensive or essential electronic device they have on them. You can make a CFL bulb glow, but you probably shouldn't. Once I was making a CFL glow while holding it in my hand when I received a shock much brighter, louder, and more painful than anything I've received from the VDG by itself. Unlike an ordinary fluorescent tube a CFL has an integrated starter and ballast. This circuitry contains capacitors which will charge slowly from the VDG, but will release that charge all at once with the result being a higher current and a bigger shock. If the shock doesn't harm you, the surprise of it could cause you to drop the bulb releasing mercury and broken glass into your surroundings.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
Never charge a capacitor with a VDG unless you understand the risks involved. A VDG is a high voltage but very low current device. A capacitor can have high voltage and supply a potentially deadly current.
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Comments
50 comments Add Comment view all 70 comments
Adum24 says:
What would happen if I had my phone in my pocket while using this. What exactly does it do to cell phones?
peacefoots says:
i was using it with my phone for 3 hours and didnt do anything to it
yardleydobon says:
Mar 5, 2011. 12:29 AM REPLY high voltage is bad for electronics. it will destroy a MOSFETs oxide layer ruining the chip. of course people generate high voltage static electricity all the time and cell phones are designed to cope with this, but why risk it?
whiteboyninja says:
About how much does it cost to make?
yardleydobon says:
$15 or less depending on how much stuff you already have. $15 if you have absolutely none of the materials.
peacefoots says:
it cost me considering i had the rubber bands and soda can 12.00
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
yardleydobon says:
sounds like you got it completed. great!
peacefoots says:
yeah it works great and i won 3 in a science fair with
peacefoots says:
Jan 27, 2011. 2:36 PM REPLY i have a metal orb that would be perfect for this but it has a 1/8 inch hole. Does that matter and if so how could i make the hole bigger?
Jan 14, 2011. 11:56 PM REPLY do you think small ID vinyl tubing for the bottom roller (maybe some cellophane tape to thicken the motor shaft up a bit) and a small ID nylon spacer on top will work as well? i took a look at the triboelectric scale and these are opposites. Plus, it's all I have around. I can't find the electrical tape.
Dreistein says:
i have the exact same bead just green
wareneutron says:
next time i make it own
jpoopdog says:
technicaly speaking, could this produce a near constant arc, that could be used to ignite gas in a potatoe launcher?
jpoopdog says:
Oct 11, 2010. 10:37 PM REPLY i dont mean to complain or anything, but, theres not quite enough images orf the vdg generators internals, perhaps if you cant get some more photos, try some illistrations, i stil dont get how it works because i dont see what it looks like inside, you know what i mean
fundash says:
Can I simply modify a fun fly stick to be more powerful???
yusuf786 says:
wow cool wish i had one looks like i got to do it soon
M4industries says:
Jun 28, 2010. 8:08 AM REPLY I saw a commercial for this once. The ad boasted it used "Weird Science" to do all the things it claimed to do. It said nothing about electrostatics or it being a VDG. It really is frightening when the youth of America can recognize Ronald McDonald at age 4, and know how to update a Twitter status, but they don't know how their own toys work.
lasermaster3531 says:
in step 8, you said the dielectric breakdown of air is 84kv/inch or 3.3kv/cm, but it is really 8.4kv/inch or 3.3kv/cm. please fix.
yardleydobon says:
May 21, 2010. 11:36 AM REPLY It says: "Since dielectric breakdown of air is approximately 84kV/in (33kV/cm) this tells us the collector voltage is around 84 kV!" From the wikipedia article on high voltage : "The dielectric breakdown strength of dry air, at Standard Temperature and Pressure (STP), between spherical electrodes is approximately 33 kV/cm." (33 kV/cm)*(2.54 cm/in) = 83.82 kV/in From the Physics Factbook : ""The dielectric strength of air is about 3 106 V/m" 3 106 V = 3000 kV, 1 m = 100 cm (3000 kV/100 cm) = (30 kV/cm) = (30 kv/cm)*(2.54 cm/in) = 76.2 kV/in No correction will be made, as no correction is necessary.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
lasermaster3531 says:
May 24, 2010. 2:53 PM REPLY okay, I concede that the dielectric strength of dry air between large spherical electrodes is 33kv/cm, but I have a 6,000 volt cockroft-walton voltage multiplier that can spark 1.5 centimeters, thus proving that the dielectric breakdown of air can fluctuate greatly according to the shape of your electrodes and the dryness and pressure of the air. judging from the fact that most people's hands are not smooth spheres of metal, the spark length of this vandegraaf generator is probably extended due to the brush discharge effect. the skin on a person's hand is generally kind of rough on a small scale and this can cause a lower voltage to jump considerably farther.
EbolaZaire says:
May 11, 2010. 10:34 AM REPLY I'm having a really difficult time keeping the first roller in place. If anybody knows, what can I use to to keep the paperclip in place inside of the PVC?
yardleydobon says:
May 21, 2010. 11:55 AM REPLY I never had a problem with the paper clip moving around. Did you tape the paper clip to the PVC? You could take the eraser from the end of a pencil and stick that on the end of the axel that's opposite the bend, then wrap tape tightly from the eraser, around the PVC, around bend and back around to the eraser a few times to secure it the paperclip firmly in place. This will make disassembly more of a pain though. A wandering roller is the biggest problem with this design. Try fine tuning the tightness of the belt by pushing/pulling the column in/out of the Tee a little. You can also try twisting the column to give the belt a bit of a twist. It's nice to hear from someone that's actually trying to make it.
EbolaZaire says:
May 22, 2010. 8:38 PM REPLY Then you'll be glad to hear that it works with flying colours! I made it, and it worked beautifully. I added some electrical tape on the rims of the lower roller, because I kept having issues with the belt.
yardleydobon says:
May 24, 2010. 10:13 AM REPLY Great! Make sure to give your knuckles a rest. Those zaps can really add up. Try it out with a light bulb too; that's the coolest!
May 16, 2010. 12:55 AM REPLY I am a steampunk and already have a fun fly stick. I didn't know it was a van de graph. I will probably make a longer belt and turn it into some sort of gadgetry. May 2, 2010. 10:53 AM REPLY Here's a tip on cutting the rubber bands to join them. If you overlap the ends a bit, then cut through both of them, the ends will match up without you having to worry about the cuts being perfectly straight.
screaminscott says:
elelove says:
It's a clever idea to create the roller!
dombeef says:
Do i need the coke can on it or can it be without it?
Learndy says:
Mar 27, 2010. 6:43 AM REPLY Can't tell from experience. I am still building one. My first own van-de-Graaff-generator. It's so exciting! However, from theory I know that the charge collector should have a smooth round surface. Any edges, corners, and dents concentrate charge which leads to coronary discharge. And you want this device to collect as much voltage as possible, don't you? ;-) I bought a coke can this morning. I'm not even sure if the pressure-standing edge at the bottom is a problem. We'll see. Don't worry, I'll post a report since I am using some different materials. -Airspace V - international hangar flying! http://www.airspace-v.com/ggadgets for tools & toys
yardleydobon says:
Mar 8, 2010. 6:21 PM REPLY You must have a collector, but it doesn't have to be an aluminum can. Step 6 has a picture that shows two cardboard collectors made to slip over an aluminum can, but also shows a toilet paper tube that can be used alone. If you use a cardboard collector you won't get any sparks. The Fun Fly Stick uses a cardboard collector to prevent sparking because it's a child's toy. Even with a cardboard collector you can still charge metal objects by induction, which will spark.
greenninja28 says:
You can buy one of those from thinkgeek.com, that looks just likethe one they have (the blue one)
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
yardleydobon says:
Please see the cowscankill thread for a discussion on glass bead versus glass tube.
Jur says:
Mar 3, 2010. 5:27 AM REPLY Great job! Clear and precise instructions for an easy and fun combination of toy and science. Just a thought for possible improvment: one could maybe use a piece of bicycle tubing instead of the rubberbands, just cut a length and glue once instead of gluing several times. =)
yardleydobon says:
Thank you for the kind praise.
It's best to avoid rubber materials that are black because they could contain carbon making them conductive. However, it should be noted that the Fun Fly Stick belt is black. The electrons need to be conveyed by the belt not conducted. I hypothesize that the multiple bonds make the belt less conductive overall, thereby improving performance. Plus once you learn to make a proper bond you can turn an ordinary, boring rubber band into a fashionable mobius strip bracelet.
Jur says:
Mar 8, 2010. 2:19 AM REPLY Oh, I had no idea about that. Good to know though =) I just might use the bicycle tubing for a Mbius strip bracelet instead, that way it would be much more customizable. I think I need to grow a couple of extra arms, I have way too many ideas for bracelets now =P Mar 2, 2010. 1:50 PM REPLY
cowscankill says:
Really cool! This would be an awesome project, but what if I don't/can't have a glass bead?
yardleydobon says:
Mar 2, 2010. 2:46 PM REPLY Well you can remove the terminals from a 5x20mm fuse and use the glass as your upper roller. This is what I initially used, but it has some downsides. It requires the you to use a PVC coupler since the inside diameter of PVC pipe is not big enough to fit the fuse. Also since the fuse is long it tends to rub the side and allow the rubber band to wander away from the comb. Finally, removing the terminals from the fuse can be frustrating and horribly smelly. You can try a nylon spacer available at hardware stores. I tried this but didn't get good results. Perhaps you'll have better luck. See the wikipedia article on triboelectric series for more materials.
cowscankill says:
Mar 3, 2010. 1:21 PM REPLY Do I have to use a specific kind of glass object? What if I happen to have some glass rods for no reason? I think I have some, about... 5 mm maybe?
yardleydobon says:
Mar 6, 2010. 3:41 PM REPLY I tried four different glass beads and a fuse. They had different colors and sizes but they all worked about the same at generating HV. Glass tubes allow the rubber band to wander away from the comb. I saw a youtube video where a someone used a christmas tree light bulb. You can remove the ink reservior from a dryed up pen, cut it to size, and glue it inside the glass tube to get it to roll better. I recommend using a glass bead. They are only $0.30. You can probably find a cheap bracelet made of glass beads locally too.
cowscankill says:
Mar 7, 2010. 6:24 AM REPLY Neat-o! I think if I get around to making this project, I will try the Christmas tree bulb first. If that doesn't work, I will buy a bead. Oh, and this is useful info; you should put this information in your instructable.
yardleydobon says:
Mar 7, 2010. 3:15 PM REPLY Here's a link to the youtube video that uses a christmas tree light bulb. There is a quick freeze frame that shows the light bulb is supported by notches in the end of the PVC. The point of this instructable is not to give you various was you can construct a VDG. Search the web if you want more information like that. The point is to give you a cookbook recipe to contruct a handheld VDG that can be waved around. If you use a tube or christmas tree light bulb, the belt will move away from the comb as you change the orientation of the VDG. Using a longer roller might also make it necessary to use a PVC coupler for it's larger inside diameter. However, a PVC coupler has a larger outside diameter as well and will not pass through the hole in a gatorade bottle. This means you will not be able to permanently tape the bottle to the can.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/
codongolev says:
the cfl didn't act as a capacitor. the two giant hefty capacitors inside the cfl acted as a capacitor. ouch.
yardleydobon says:
Mar 2, 2010. 4:05 PM REPLY Yes, I believe that is most probably the correct explanation. Though causing a displacement current by applying a voltage across a dielectric (glass) is all you need to have a capacitor. I wonder if I could get the same effect from an ordinary incandescent light bulb. I think all of us have seen demonstrations of ordinary fluorescent tubes (just gas in a tube) lighting up when held near a tesla coil, so I don't think it takes a big leap of imagination for someone to get the idea to try the same thing with a CFL. However, this is actually a bad idea, because a CFL is not just a fluorescent tube but a fluorescent tube plus a starter and a ballast. A picture I found shows two 8.4uF 250V caps plus a couple more electrolytics in the uF range. I admit saying the CFl acted like a capacitor was lazy of me. Thanks for making me think more about it.
jcomtois says:
Mar 4, 2010. 6:18 PM REPLY You can disassemble the base of the CFL and remove the ballast circuitry leaving just the bulb with its leads. Connect one to ground and the other to a touchplate. Or just reconnect them to the screw-base and connect the wires via a lamp socket to hold the bulb upright. I did this to add some interest to a grounding disc that I use to discharge myself when I get out of my computer chair, which can build up quite a charge depending on what type of fabric I am wearing.
codongolev says:
ha... that would be cool to explain. "what's that?" "my discharging plate." "what's it do?" "this." *gets in chair, wiggles, gets back up, touches plate, bulb lights up* "sometimes I acquire too much magic while I'm sitting there, so I have to get rid of it."
jcomtois says:
Mar 5, 2010. 8:56 PM REPLY I posted an instructable on building the touchplate. I'd post a link but I don't work this site often so I don't know how to point to another instructable.
yardleydobon says:
Here's a link to it.
jcomtois says:
Thanks, just a regular link I guess. http://www.instructables.com/id/Static-discharge-toy/
yardleydobon says:
Mar 2, 2010. 4:53 PM REPLY I just tested an ordinary 90W incandescent bulb. I was unable to make it act like a capacitor. However, the whole bulb glows violet-blue when a spark is transmitted. I believe this is from the argon briefly turning to plasma.
http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Lightning-Wand-a-Handheld-Van-de-Graaff-Genera/