I have a residue from fractional distillation of nitro RC fuel.
Nitro RC Fuel contains mostly methanol, then nitromethane (10-40%), lubricant oil (usually castor oil, 15-20%) and dye.
I distilled out what I could until the residue started smoking.
The problem is that this oil likely still contains nitromethane.
I deal with nitro compounds by mixing them with other flammable solvent (methanol, ethanol) and burn the mixture.
I am afraid the oil won't burn nicely and will smoke a lot, perhaps leaving soot behind. This is very inconvenient, but the only effective disposal
technique I can think of is to dilute the oil with cleanly-burning solvent (alcohols, gasoline etc.) and burn it oustide in a metal can which can then
be disposed (landfill). The only issue is the large amount of the oil (it might burn for a long time).
Another option might be to wash off residual nitromethane and methanol with lots of water, then destroy the nitro compound chemically in water, then
dispose the oil as castor oil (non-hazardous).
Perhaps adding the oil slowly to a stirred Piranha solution will work, too. Again, I am not sure that I have enough oxidiser (H2O2) to dispose all the
heavy oil.
CharlieA - 12-3-2020 at 17:02
Is it possible to test your usual procedure with a small portion (say, a couple of milliliters)? It just might burn more cleanly than you expect.nimgoldman - 12-3-2020 at 19:27
Yeah sure I will try soon.
I should have tried before posting, but I like to get a wider picture before experimenting...Corrosive Joeseph - 12-3-2020 at 20:58
1) Fill your car up up with gasoline
2) Pour in your 400mls of castor oil/nitromethane/dye mix
3) Drive the socks off it.
4) Repeat steps 1, 2, and 3 next week.
/CJ Mush - 24-3-2020 at 15:14
Add some cast iron pieces and hcl solution to it in a separate jar, cover it, put it aside and wait a week or so. Methylamine.hcl will form in the
aq fraction. Search for this tech in the search engine here.unionised - 25-3-2020 at 15:00
2) Pour in your 400mls of castor oil/nitromethane/dye mix
3) Drive the socks off it.
4) Repeat steps 1, 2, and 3 next week.
/CJ
Works even better if your car has a diesel engine. Corrosive Joeseph - 25-3-2020 at 16:11
Actually, it probably works best in the lawnmower or the chainsaw but you get the gist..... Burning it in an engine as fuel is possibly the simplest
method of disposal and the one I would choose.
