bluamine
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How to extract mercury (Hg) from merbromine C20H8Br2HgNa2O6 (aka mercurochrome)
Hi guys
I want to know how can i use merbromine (aka mercurochrome) C20H8Br2HgNa2O6 to obtain mercury (i just want to use it in electrical dissociation of
NaCl solution to make NaOH)
Please help me!!
[Edited on 18-8-2015 by bluamine]
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unionised
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How much merbromine do you have?
It would take about 25 grams to give a single millilitre of mercury.
Also, if you can't answer the question you posted, you probably shouldn't be working with mercury and it's compounds.
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MrHomeScientist
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Much simpler would be to buy a mercury thermometer and break it. Unless you're actually interested in the chemistry of that reaction, of course.
Or you can avoid mercury altogether by using a diaphragm cell, as I have done. It's not very efficient, but it's very simple. Just use a clay flower
pot nested inside a larger bucket. Fill the bucket with salt water up to the rim of the flower pot, and fill the pot with distilled water with a tiny
bit of salt (or, ideally, NaOH) dissolved for conductivity. I put whichever electrode generated the NaOH in the flower pot so I could simply lift it
out. Takes several days to make a weak solution, but it does work.
Or you can avoid all of that and just buy NaOH; there's plenty of places online that sell it. Unless you're actually interested in the chemistry of
that other reaction, of course.
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bluamine
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Quote: Originally posted by MrHomeScientist  | | Much simpler would be to buy a mercury thermometer and break it. Unless you're actually interested in the chemistry of that reaction, of course.
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Thermometers containing mercury became rare years ago that i can't find many.. (i need them for other uses too)
| Quote: Originally posted by MrHomeScientist | | Or you can avoid all of that and just buy NaOH; there's plenty of places online that sell it. Unless you're actually interested in the chemistry of
that other reaction, of course. |
I couldn't buy NaOH this is why i am interested to prepare it at home.
[Edited on 19-8-2015 by bluamine]
[Edited on 19-8-2015 by bluamine]
[Edited on 19-8-2015 by bluamine]
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j_sum1
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eBay sells mercury thermometers.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Glass-Thermometer-Lab-White-Back-...
A bit of searching should find something better priced. You could also go for an ancient barometer or a sphygmomanometer. Anything with mercury goes
quickly but they do come up reasonably often.
Or, you could buy something like this:
http://www.dx.com/p/yaosheng-ys8-diy-5mm-mercury-switches-si...
Seriously though, if I was you I would first see if it really was impossible to obtain NaOH. Buying mercury is expensive. Playing with it is
hazardous. And a cell to manufacture your own NaOH sounds like all kinds of painful.
Around here it can be bought from the supermarket as a drain-cleaner. (Acid drain cleaners are not used!) It is also available from the hardware
store. It is a major component of some oven cleaners. And it is easy to find on eBay or from science suppliers. KOH is also an aceptable substitute
in many applications. IMO, somewhere among those options is one that is far easier than breaking thermometers or playing games with mercurochrome.
(I didn't now you could still get that stuff anywhere!)
[Edited on 19-8-2015 by j_sum1]
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