The Thames & Kosmos Fuel Cell
Car & Experiment Kit provides a playful introduction to one of the most
significant technologies of the early 21st Century. With this kit you
can build a model car that actually runs on water!
First,
add water and watch it separate into hydrogen and oxygen. Then, use
those stored gases to power your vehicle across the floor. Now that we
have your attention, roll up your sleeves and find out more through
experiments and demonstrations you can do on your own, in a classroom or
with friends.
Fuel
cells are a promising means of producing energy in the future. Some fuel
cells, such as this one, do not consume fossil fuels and therefore are
considered environmentally friendly. Automobile manufacturers are
already experimenting successfully with this technology and it is widely
believed that fuel cells will power automobiles and many electronic
devices, including laptops and cell phones, in the near future.
With this unique kit, you
can
build your own experimental reversible fuel cell car to learn more about
this energy source. With more than 30 experiments and demonstrations,
users will learn how a reversible fuel cell works to perform
electrolysis as well as to create energy. The electricity required to
activate electrolysis is created with a large solar cell included with
the kit. During electrolysis, water is separated into hydrogen and
oxygen and the resulting energy is stored as a gas. When needed, the gas
is fed into the fuel cell, which then serves as the power source.
The 96-page, full color
Experiment
Manual offers over 30 experiments, including:
How to build a solar-powered car. Effects of direct and indirect
radiation. Characteristics of a solar module. Electrolysis and its
effect on water. Oxy-hydrogen test. How to construct and load a
reversible fuel cell. Decomposition of water in the fuel cell.
Qualitative and quantitative analysis of gas in a fuel cell. How
efficient is electrolysis? How light influences electrolysis. Solar
electrolysis. Fuel cell-powered car.
The
Thames & Kosmos Fuel Cell Car & Experiment Kit won a Silver Award from
the Parents’ Choice Foundation in 2002. Here’s their review:
"Wow! - usually when toys say there are 30 experiments,
there are a few basic experiments and the others amount to small changes
and variations on the basic ones. Not so here. The experiments, based on
building a model car that runs on water, are versatile and cover a wide
range of phenomena. The background for each phenomenon is extensive.
...For the budding physicist or environmentalist in your house, or the
engineer at Grandma’s, this kit is a highway to fun."
