Re: Can water be created in the laboratory?

Absolutely! Indeed, it is made in all sorts of places!

Water is simply "H2O" - two hydrogen combined with one oxygen. In the 
lab, we can make this reaction happen by filling a balloon with two parts 
hydrogen and one part oxygen and then just adding a spark or a flame. It 
is an explosive reaction and you may have seen this demonstrated in any 
number of places. Probably the two most recognizeable are 
the "Hindenberg" fire which resulted from the combustion of the hydrogen 
gas cells in the air ship and out of the tail end of any rocket - such as 
the Saturn V's used in sending the Apollo space craft to the moon. These 
giant rockets get their thrust from the combustion reaction between pure 
liquid hydrogen and pure liquid oxygen. Their exhaust is nothing but 
water.

In a less violent reaction, there is a lot of discussion about hydrogen 
powered vehicles and a hydrogen fuel cell based economy. In these fuel 
cells, hydrogen and oxygen are combined in a controlled fashion to 
produce water and electricity. They have been advertised on T.V. by the 
Ford Motor Company as the answer for clean cars because the only product 
of the reaction is water.

Perhaps more interesting is that we make water with every breath. 
Somewhere in your science text book, I bet there is a section on 
respiration which points out that we take in sugar and oxygen and breath 
out carbon dioxide. But we also breath out water - it is the other 
product in the respiration reaction. That is,

         glucose + oxygen  ---->  carbon dioxide + water

The interesting thing with this reaction, though, is that the water is 
not actually made from the oxygen atoms in the glucose or the oxygen gas 
that provides the energy. The biochemical pathways are much more complex 
and fascinating.

And, of course, respiration really is just oxidation which happens in all 
sorts of different places. But one of the most visible is a fire which 
oxidizes complex carbohydrates to carbon dioxide and, you guessed it, 
water. Indeed, burning a log will generate an awful lot of water as wood 
contains a significant amount of water as well.

This can be demonstrated fairly easily with a candle and a glass surface 
(preferably a cool glass surface but not so cold that moisture condenses 
out of the air). The gas escaping from the candle will condense on the 
glass and make it moist. It also tends to make it sooty, so a little care 
is needed in doing this experiment.

So, water can be and is made in all sorts of places. But if that is the 
case, then why does the text book say "all water on the planet has always 
been here"? Well, they aren't lying because to a first approximation, all 
of the atoms that make up water are the same atoms that have been around 
since the beginning of the planet or, at least, shortly thereafter (there 
are lots of theories about where our water originally came from). But I 
think that what they were try to emphasize is that the water in the ocean 
evaporates to form clouds, which produce rain, which runs across the 
surface to collect in streams and rivers, which eventually flow back into 
the ocean where the water evaporates. As a broad, conceptual statement 
this is not bad but it does miss much of the subtleties of the 
hydrological cycle and it certainly doesn't account for all of the water 
that is involved in the biosphere.

Yes, we can make water in the laboratory but, more importantly, we 
generate water in our own cells and release it into the environment with 
every breath we take. And that is amazing science.

Hope this helps.