Chill - 10-10-2013 at 12:54
Very quick question that someone here might know the answer to.
I've researched how to store hydrogen peroxide as to lower it's rate of decomposition, but I haven't stumbled across anything that says it would be
okay to straight up freeze it.
Most articles say, "store in a cool dry place with little light", or something of that manner. My chest freezer is the coolest place I've got, but I'm
not sure if freezing H2O2 would do more harm than good.
If this isn't a good idea, can you explain why?
Thank you.
BobD1001 - 10-10-2013 at 13:42
It can just be stored in an amber bottle. Hdpe also holds up to hydrogen peroxide just fine. I store my 27% in the hdpe bottle it originally came in,
and it has held up fine with no noticeable degredation. Just make sure you use a bottle that does not allow light to penetrate.
bfesser - 10-10-2013 at 15:07
No problems with freezing it—provided your container doesn't shatter when the contents expand.
Chill - 10-10-2013 at 20:58
I shouldn't have a problem with expansion. I was mostly worried about the "thawing" of the hydrogen peroxide possibly causing rapid decomposition or
something similar. It was just a possibility that I thought of.
Would you say that freezing is actually more effective than just keeping it cold? Or should I expect similar results for both storage
methods?
elementcollector1 - 10-10-2013 at 22:20
To a point, freezing will actually concentrate your hydrogen peroxide; the process is known as "freeze distillation" but caps off at around 15%. It
really shouldn't affect your H2O2
WPK0129 - 11-10-2013 at 13:51
Also, I don't know how concentrated your H2O2 is and how cold your freezer is, but it may not actually freeze in your freezer, depending...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phase_diagram_hydrogen_per...
[Edited on 11-10-2013 by WPK0129]
eidolonicaurum - 4-1-2014 at 02:38
You can use an aluminium bottle, that does not catalyse the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide, its what they used to store it in the days before
plastic.
ScienceHideout - 4-1-2014 at 08:05
I keep my 30% H2O2 in an accordion bottle that was made for storing photographic chemicals. It is opaque and heavy duty, and holds quite a bit of
peroxide. when done, I can safely cap it and not worry about the bottle exploding from excessive decomposition. There is no need to vent it. Ever. No
opening the bottle under pressure. Ever.
Surprisingly enough, I can't remember any time that my bottle really expanded huge- but I like to have some insurance 
. It was Flinn Scientific that recommends this type of storage, and if you get H2O2
from Flinn, they automatically send it in this type of bottle.
To directly quote Flinn Scientific, if H2O2 is stored in a dark bottle at room temperature, it will decompose at a rate of .5% per year... Not bad
Here is a link to an accordion bottle on Avogadro's Lab Supply (You can find similar ones on ebay and amazon):
http://www.avogadro-lab-supply.com/item.php?item_id=711&...