/r/chemistry

Photograph via snooOG

A community for chemists and those who love chemistry

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  • Likewise, simple pictures of uninteresting and garden variety chemistry-related things are not appreciated. If a caption or explanation is included this helps, but please use your discretion.

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Notes:

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Past Weekly Topics

/r/chemistry

3,536,650 Subscribers

1

What would happen if you mix acetone from nail polish remover, powdered citric acid, and potassium chlorate from match heads?

0 Comments
2025/01/12
19:54 UTC

1

Chemical equation dilemma

Soo we had chemistry class and our teacher gave us equation H2O2 + HIO3 → I2 + O2 + H2O to balance and then calculate weight of something. My solution was H2O2 + 2HIO3 → I2 + 3O2 + 2H2O Her solution was 5H2O2 + 2HIO3 → I2 + 5O2 + 6H2O So we had a discussion that something weird is happening and that it shouldnt be possible. I now googled and found it should be 3H2O2 + 2HIO3 → I2 + 4O2 + 4H2O What is correct? And why?

0 Comments
2025/01/12
19:51 UTC

0

Are newly appeared Copper Salt and Ferric Salt inpregnant indicating silica gels (desiccants) safe to use?

Hi folks,

Recently did my research regarding indicating silica gels (desiccants) and found that there are a few more types appeared on the market. I'm talking about Copper Salt and Ferric Salt inpregnant indicating silica gels.

Before new types appeared, the go-to dyes were:

  1. Cobalt Chloride (Blue colour with resulting product chemical formula: SiO2. XH20 + CoCl2)
  2. Methyl Violet or Crystal Violet (Orange colour with resulting product chemical formula: SiO2. XH2O + C25H30N3Cl)

Cobalt salts are known to be evil, and Methyl Violet has the evidence of being carcinogenic. So, I was now surprised that industries were working on something more safe.
Then I found the:
3. Copper Salt (Orange-to-light-green: CuX, example of Material Safety Datasheet)
4. Ferric Salt (Orange-to-white: FeX, example of MSDS)
Those ones are claimed to be the "new era" of the indicating desiccants and claimed to be safe. My research did not bring any information or researches except this one (where I have no access) to either prove or disprove the theses. I even struggled to find the full formula (tough I understand there is a nuance there with "X"). That is where I'd like to ask the community with the specific industry knowledge to comment on this.

If I be more specific and push this question to the boundary, I'd pose it like: Will it be reasonably safe for one to reactivate the Copper Salt / Ferric Salt inpregnant silica gels in the oven where you are cooking cooking your food?

Thank you!

0 Comments
2025/01/12
19:32 UTC

0

Where to buy Chemical-Resistant Nitrile Gloves (EN 374 Standard)?

Hi everyone,
I'm looking for recommendations on where to buy chemical-resistant gloves online within Europe. Here are the specific characteristics I'm looking for:

  • Type: Disposable or reusable
  • Material: Nitrile rubber (NBR)
  • Standards: Compliant with European standard NF EN 374 or equivalent
  • Permeation: Level 6 (> 480 minutes)
  • Thickness: ≥0.11 mm

I need reliable, high-quality gloves for protecting myself while working with lead white paint and would appreciate any trusted websites or suppliers you know of. Thank you so much!

3 Comments
2025/01/12
17:28 UTC

3

How are sodium polyacrylates used in toys, like BB guns, dyed different colors?

In searches for SPA powders I can only find it in white. Is it a matter of using it to absorb a dyed material and then desiccating it back to powder?

6 Comments
2025/01/12
17:14 UTC

1

How to regulate pressure w/ aspirator vacuum setup?

Hi,

I am planning to use a 100 PSI diaphragm pump and an aspirator to do my first vacuum filtrations.

My concern is that with high vacuum, I will have to deal with excessive solvent vapors (ethyl acetate, dilute acetic acid) that will attack the vacuum tubing (PVC, will probably switch to silicone), vacuum gauge (stainless steel) and pump (santoprene).

I am not too concerned about damage to those replaceable parts, but I am worried about contaminating my filtrate.

Can I just use a 2 neck receiving flask, with one neck connected to the Buchner funnel / vacuum line, and the other to a flow control adapter partially open to the atmosphere?

Also, would it make sense to put a condenser before the cold trap to mitigate vapors coming into contact with tubing?

2 Comments
2025/01/12
17:13 UTC

17

How exactly does Borax work so well in removing smells?

Aside from "it's very alkaline", can science explain the underlying chemical reasons for why borax is able to remove mold, mildew, and smells from clothes? We only recently rediscovered borax's power in renewing an entire closet of items like nothing else (baking soda, strong detergents). It got me researching this odd compound, and I've yet to come across a full explanation of why it works.

(for what it's worth, we boiled 5 gallons of water, added 2 cups of borax, and then let the clothes sit over night, then ran it through the washing machine. Worked like a miracle. No idea of the boiling or long soak was necessary, or if less/more borax would've been better.)

3 Comments
2025/01/12
16:41 UTC

1

Tordon/Picloram

I killed an invasive tree with Tordon last year. Will I be able to burn the wood from this dead tree? Will burning it produce a noxious gas from the Tordon. Also, when the stump grinder leaves the ground up mixture of soil, clay, and wood, will I be able to safely dump the grindings on my property? What if a future home owner uses these grindings for a garden in a year or two? The half-life is 90 days.

1 Comment
2025/01/12
15:47 UTC

0

Can nose oil be used in cooking

Hi, does the oil on noses have similar chemical properties as the oil typically used for cooking? In other words, theoretically, if someone collects enough oil from noses, is it possible to use that oil for cooking? Thank you for your answers.

9 Comments
2025/01/12
14:09 UTC

1

Enhance dust control idea

I’m currently use sodium silicate mix with sucfactant to release tension of water and form gel connection between particle of my road dust area but seem a bit quite costly. Any idea I can reduce the cost but still maintain the affect or better ?

0 Comments
2025/01/12
13:24 UTC

7

How to sterilize potassium dichromate solution?

Can someone help me? I need to sterilize potassium dichromate solution, and apparently it's not autoclave-safe. What are the alternative ways one can sterilize potassium dichromate stock?

37 Comments
2025/01/12
10:35 UTC

304

Does anyone have any idea of what the black goo in this video is?

203 Comments
2025/01/12
09:51 UTC

1

Help me start.

Chemistry is awesome, but I do not know anything about it, what are some simple experiments a 15 year old can do?

2 Comments
2025/01/12
01:02 UTC

2

Keeping water labs cool

Heyyyy Working on a lab that I can demonstrate to kids to keep them interested. We are only using water for the lab (ikr boring) so I need a way to keep these kids interested. Here is the kicker I can't change the ph of the water. I need to show some kind of color change or rxn. Thanks for the help I've been racking my brain for way to make this lab more fun

6 Comments
2025/01/12
05:31 UTC

0

Buying chemicals in Alibaba: Are they legit?

Hello, I just want to ask if anyone here has experienced ordering chemicals in Alibaba (specifically Shandong Keijian Chemical Co. Ltd.) and if they are legitimate or not. We were planning on buying titanium precursors from a distributor in our country but the arrival time takes 2 months at minimum and we can't wait that long due to time constraints. So we resorted to buying at Alibaba. I'm just worried since I haven't tried ordering here. They did send me a COA of the product but I'm just worried that anyone can fake that out.

18 Comments
2025/01/12
01:38 UTC

10

curious to hear some arguments from chemists about beauty products ingredients.

there's so much misinformation out there and scare mongering with skincare and cosmetic products and "natural" being better. I'm curious to hear from some chemists about all of this and their thoughts whether general or about specific ingredients

32 Comments
2025/01/11
23:06 UTC

0

Is it possible to harvest Essential Oil from Flowers and harvest Seed too ?

I make natural Perfumes,

and have mixed Feelings about the Plant getting killed whilst having Sex and getting Babies just for "my Amusement".

Are there Plants wich finish the first Seeds while Blossoms are still blooming?

Are there any Ways to get Oil without killing the Plant in the Act, hence more ethically correct?

You know, i dont have Problems harvesting Leafes wich can regrow, but its not happening whilst Sex. Same with harvesting Wood from an old Tree.

14 Comments
2025/01/11
21:58 UTC

6

Would would you 3d print for chemistry?

What are some stuff that you would 3d print that relates to chemistry and maybe some handy stuff to have? Currently I am thinking of printing some organjc chemistry drawing stencils and some basic clamps for glassware. Any other ideas ?

40 Comments
2025/01/11
21:41 UTC

0

anyone know the best way for me to annotate an image on macbook

all i want to do is draw an organic structure on an image of my NMR spectrum. i have wacom track pad. preview annotations work but keeps auto correcting my lines and it’s really annoying😔trying to export the pdf as a word document and use that? who knew it would be so hard im tempted to just print it out and draw on it by hand lol

4 Comments
2025/01/11
21:14 UTC

2

Igloo building

Hi! I don’t know if this is the correct place to post this, but I am making an igloo with my son and the bricks are taking forever to freeze all the way through! Is there something I can add to the water to make it freeze faster? We are in the Midwest and are having 0-20°F nights/days. Thanks!

6 Comments
2025/01/11
20:30 UTC

1

Where to get carbonless copy lab notebook?

My organic chem lab starts soon and my professor requires a carbon copy lab notebook, but shipping is taking longer than expected for my notebook and won't be able to come in on time. Is there anywhere I can get a carbonless copy notebook in person? I'd really appreciate some ideas or at least maybe an alternative I can try while waiting for my notebook to ship.

Sidenote: I've tried looking at Walmart, Target, Staples, Barnes-and-Noble, other bookstores, and OfficeMax and they only sell carbonless copy notebooks online? I get that these notebooks aren't in high demand but seriously?

8 Comments
2025/01/11
20:20 UTC

0

COULD 1,2,3 TRICHLOROPROPANE BE MADE FROM GLYCERIN WITH HCl?

Hi guys I'm currently working on a chemistry project and I happen to need the reagent 1,2,3 trichloropropane. I really prefer making it myself so I thought about the option of turning glycerin into this product. I would really avoid using nasty obscure chlorinating agents as thionyl chloride or PCl5 if possible, so I wondered if just HCl could work. I would really appreciate help and suggestions. Thanks a lot

14 Comments
2025/01/11
20:07 UTC

2

Do I have to do any processing to use commercial muriatic acid powder as a substitute for HCL bought from a science supplier?

I ask since the ingredients also includes “spray adjuvant,” but I’m not sure what this is and if it would affect its use for other purposes? I’ve been learning ways to extract pollen from soil samples and HCL is a component of the protocol.

10 Comments
2025/01/11
18:44 UTC

1

Have you came up reagents that their purity/specifications weren't as depicted on the label? How did you find out?

Title

10 Comments
2025/01/11
18:08 UTC

162

Something happened to my bottle of sodium hydroxide, any ideas?

87 Comments
2025/01/11
17:57 UTC

82

Realtime crystallization of one of my precursors

Thought this looks cool as the needles are forming and wanted to share it with you guys.

4 Comments
2025/01/11
17:33 UTC

1

Electrochemistry question

In electrochemistry, if the problem asks to tell the direction of the reaction, and if the electromotive force is positive, that means that the reaction goes from the anode to the cathode or viceversa?

1 Comment
2025/01/11
17:22 UTC

2

Saturated CaCl2 solution soaked into wooden floor...

Sooo, we had one of those dehumidifiers around and i got a good amount of the solution on the hardwood floor. My attempts to remove it weren't fast enough, apparently, and now it seems to be soaked in there. Since CaCl2 will never dry on its own, is there a way to deal with it without having to rip out that portion of floor?

4 Comments
2025/01/11
16:28 UTC

0

Removing THF from aqueous solution

Hi all!

I have encountered some trouble with samples from a current test campaign. I'm looking for a way to remove the THF from aqueous polystyrene dispersions to prevent altering my samples when drying for SEM imaging. Do you have any tips for removing the THF from the liquid phase or to remove the particles somehow?

2 Comments
2025/01/11
15:35 UTC

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