Today I saw a kilo of copper oxychloride for 2 euros and immediately wondered whether this would supplement my two copper chloride etchants that I
have at different masses?
3Cu(OH)2·CuClH2O - so logically all I have to do is absolutely Nothing, just add to taste? This is from what I can gather basically copper chloride
with extra H bits and O bits, because all the oxygen and hydrogen will mingle
with the water. A natural replacement for waiting for copper to dissolve in HCL and Oxygenated water. (This is for the etchant)woelen - 25-5-2012 at 11:29
Yes, this is very useful for your etchant. Just add some of this compound to hydrochloric acid and you get a green solution, which can be used for
etching. While etching, assure that fresh air can reach the solution and sometimes you need to replenisch the acid. No need for adding more copper(II)
in the mix, the etching process itself gives you more and more copper(II) and soon you'll have enough seed-solution to help many of your friends also
if they want to etch copper also.CHRIS25 - 25-5-2012 at 14:10
Hi, Mmm... This is interesting, and no doubt there is a perfectly rational explanation to all this; but yes I would appreciate an explanation as to
why there are so many different formulas for this chemical and clearly two different g/mol measurements. Obviously important to understand my
measurements and equation balancing. All these are taken from manufacturers websites in except for the very first one which is wikpedia,
I would appreciate an explanation as to why there are so many different formulas for this chemical and clearly two different g/mol measurements.
It's because "copper oxychloride" isn't a single chemical, but rather some family of compounds. These start
with copper chloride, of which there are two to begin with, and then they have extra oxygen in them in some way. Now there are several ways of having
more oxygen. In addition there's water of hydration to deal with. And furthermore, it's likely that the commercial products you're looking at are not
chemically pure, but mixtures of related molecules.
Practically speaking, you need only two aspects of any commercial product. You need to know how much copper is in it and you need to know how much HCl
to add to it to get to your target pH. In both cases it's likely easier to measure these to adequate accuracy and not sweat the details of the
reaction pathway that get you to your etchant.CHRIS25 - 26-5-2012 at 03:26
, because all the oxygen and hydrogen will mingle
with the water. A natural replacement for waiting for copper to dissolve in HCL and Oxygenated water. (This is for the etchant)