Deathunter88
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Registered: 20-2-2015
Location: Beijing, China
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Starter Chemicals/Suggestions for Experiments I Can Do
Hello Everyone,
This is my first post and will probably be the start of my serious chemistry experimentation. I would like to have suggestions for possible
experiments I can do with the chemicals and equipment I currently have as well as what starter chemicals/equipment I should perhaps try to acquire.
Chemicals I currently have:
Concentrated Sulfuric Acid
Concentrated Nitric Acid
Concentrated Hydrochloric Acid
Cadmium Carbonate
Cobalt Carbonate
Calcium Chloride Anhydrous
Zinc Carbonate
Nickel Carbonate
Manganese Carbonate
Strontium Carbonate
Sodium Carbonate
Magnesium Carbonate
Copper Carbonate
Calcium Carbonate
Potassium Carbonate
Barium Carbonate
Sodium Silicate
Any salt easily made with above materials
Current Equipment:
Beakers 50-1000ml assorted
Erlenmeyer Flasks 50-1000ml assorted
Round Bottom Flasks 250, 500ml
Three Neck Round Bottom Flasks 250-500ml
Thermometers, Stir Rods
500ml Heating Mantle
50-330 Celsius Hotplate/Magnetic Stirrer
Separatory Funnels
Pipets 50ml
Burett 50ml
Alcohol Lamp
Vacuum Pump
Vacuum Filtration Set
Full distillation set with different types of condensers
All types of storage containers
Safety goggles
Face Shield
Respirator
Gloves
All of above equipment is new and awaiting use. I would hate to just have them on the shelf gathering dust not doing anything.
I am also wondering if I should buy a fume hood. It would make life a lot easier and is not too expensive. The current fume hood I am looking at
buying costs about 250$.
Thanks in advance for any advice. 
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Amos
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If you like, you can put some of those transition metal carbonates to good use and start making all kinds of brilliantly colored salts and complexes,
if you think you might be into making that. Oxides, hydroxides, nitrates, chlorides, phosphates(if you can get your hands on some phosphoric acid or a
water-soluble phosphate salt), chromates(if you obtain sodium or potassium chromate/dichromate), silicates. Copper in particular has a lot of
beautiful chemistry that can easily be found all over the site, and several of us(including myself) collect copper compounds or complexes. I'd also
recommend getting your hands on some ammonia, or, alternatively, sodium hydroxide and either ammonium nitrate or urea, both of which can be reacted
with sodium hydroxide to produce ammonia.
[Edited on 2-20-2015 by Amos]
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Deathunter88
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Posts: 513
Registered: 20-2-2015
Location: Beijing, China
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Quote: Originally posted by Amos  | | If you like, you can put some of those metal carbonates to good use and start making all kinds of brilliantly colored salts and complexes, if you
think you might be into making that. Oxides, hydroxides, nitrates, chlorides, phosphates(if you can get your hands on some phosphoric acid or a
water-soluble phosphate salt), chromates(if you obtain sodium or potassium chromate/dichromate), silicates. Copper in particular has a lot of
beautiful chemistry that can easily be found all over the site, and several of us(including myself) collect copper compounds or complexes.
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Thanks for the advice, I will definitely be making at least the sulfate, chloride and nitrate salts of the substances. I am pretty sure that hot
phosphoric acid will attack glass and don't really have a suitable plastic container but I guess glass would be fine since making phosphates doesn't
require you to heat up the acid. Also where I live I can get concentrated hydrofluoric acid easily but that stuff is NASTY and I don't trust myself
with it yet.
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gdflp
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Hot phosphoric acid will technically attack glass, but this is very slow and the effect will only be noticeable at prolonged periods at high
temperature >100°C. Another few chemicals that I would recommend obtaining are some bases, ammonia, sodium hydroxide, and potassium hydroxide, as
well as glacial acetic acid. It really depends on what type of chemistry you are interested in though, from the chemicals you posted, you seem to be
more interested in inorganic chemistry.
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Deathunter88
National Hazard
Posts: 513
Registered: 20-2-2015
Location: Beijing, China
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| Quote: Originally posted by gdflp | | Hot phosphoric acid will technically attack glass, but this is very slow and the effect will only be noticeable at prolonged periods at high
temperature >100°C. Another few chemicals that I would recommend obtaining are some bases, ammonia, sodium hydroxide, and potassium hydroxide, as
well as glacial acetic acid. It really depends on what type of chemistry you are interested in though, from the chemicals you posted, you seem to be
more interested in inorganic chemistry. |
Good advice, forgot to order bases. Whoops. I really don't like working with acetic acid because I develop nausea when working with even 5% acetic
acid. But I have decided to buy a fume hood for 250$ and so I guess I should be fine working with acetic acid in the fume hood.
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