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How to Make Rust Fast

Metal forms rust when it oxidizes, and if left unchecked, the rust can deteriorate the metal to the point where it's no longer functional. This is a bad thing for car restorers, but if you need some rust for an art project or for other purposes, you'll need to get creative. One of the faster ways to make rust is through electrolysis, using electricity and salt water to rust a sacrificial piece of iron.

Things You'll Need

Plastic tub
Salt
Tablespoon measuring tool
Scrap iron pieces
Mortar
Pestle

Instructions

- 1
  Find a well-ventilated area to place the plastic tub. Place the scrap iron pieces in the plastic tub, and separate them into two piles on opposite sides of the tub that don't touch the other. Put more iron on one side of the tub than the other.
- 2
  Fill up the tub with as much water as possible, leaving approximately 1 inch of iron exposed on each side of the tub.
- 3
  Pour a few tablespoons of salt into the water and stir it around with your hand. Connect the positive clamp from the battery charger to the iron pile in the tub with the least amount of iron, and connect the negative clamp on the battery charger to the pile with the most amount of iron.
- 4
  Plug in the battery charger. Let the charger run for a few hours so that the electrolysis process can do its job.
- 5
  Unplug the battery charger. Drain off the water from the tub. Allow the rust on the bottom of the tub to dry naturally, or use a hair dryer to dry out the rust. Take out the iron from the tub and shake off the rust from the metal. Pour any of the resulting rust into a mortar and pestle, then grind it up to make the rust a fine powder.

Rocks & Minerals