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How to Make a 100 foot glow stick with Dr. Lithium

Oct 26, 2009 08:49 PM

Watch this science video tutorial from Nurd Rage on how to make a 100 foot glow stick with Dr. Lithium.

Just in time for Halloween. Brighter than electroluminescent wire and self-powered. This can be used to decorate, glow stuff up, or create all kinds of awesome effects.

Warning: TCPO is carcinogenic and you should wear gloves and masks while working with it.

The procedure is simple, mix together 500mg of 9,10-bis (phenylethynyl) anthracene and 17g of TCPO in 500mL of diethyl phthalate solvent and heat it up until it dissolves. Then top it up to about 2.1 liters and add 120mL of hydrogen peroxide and 10g of sodium acetate. Shake thoroughly and draw into a 100 ft glow stick with an inner diameter of 3/8". Suction by a vacuum pump is recommended.

To prevent spilling the ends should be capped with brass or plastic compression fittings. Leave 5+ feet of space in the tube to allow for expansion of the chemicals depending on temperature.

Glow stick will last for about 6 hours. Use more TCPO if a longer glow is needed.

Possibly the world's biggest glow stick.

Brought to you by one of WonderHowTo's favorite scientists, NurdRage.

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