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Author: Subject: Hazardous combinations of simple chemicals
IrC
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[*] posted on 13-5-2014 at 09:32


Thanks Dan. What had my curiosity peaked was chemical reactions going on at such low temperatures, and at such a rate as to actually be explosive. One of the things I love about science is no matter how much you learn, there is still no end to new understanding.





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[*] posted on 14-5-2014 at 10:10


Potassium hydroxide and dichloromethane isn't fun, however I am unsure of the decomposition products, I would have taken a swab of the glass shards embedded ten mm into the plaster walls but I was out of swabs. It taught me that the correct course of action, when you see a 1l schott bottle begin to boil violently, and it is still capped, is to duck behind the microwave (island bench).
Boom was alright, not as bass rich as a hydrogen/oxygen detonation though.




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Dan Vizine
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[*] posted on 17-5-2014 at 10:51


Nitric acid solutions used to clean glassware should not be stored. Even if you think that nothing hazardous could have formed, if you're wrong the consequences are potentially nasty.

When I was in grad school, our lab was occupied by 4 full-blown vacuum lines. Cleaning them was an ongoing chore. Since we had mercury diffusion pumps, things near the vacuum source end, and cooled by LN2, would condense a little mercury vapor leaving dark shadows. These were usually addressed by 68% nitric acid filled wash bottles as the first step. Following this step, water, alcohol, acetone, cyclohexane and benzene could also used to complete the cleaning. My lab mate put the waste nitric acid into a 500 mL bottle in the rear corner of a fume hood after he completed such a cleaning. That night, after the lab was empty, the bottle detonated with such force that brown glass fragments embedded themselves in the aluminum face of the nearby GC, removed numerous sections of the nearby vacuum line and bent one of the heavy metal supports comprising the hood frame away from its normal position by about 2 inches by actually deforming the metal. The only plausible explanation is that small amounts of organics were present. Whether or not the presence of mercury in solution and a trace of ethanol could have caused in situ generation of mercury fulminate is unknown. No organics were supposed to be in there.
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Dan Vizine
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[*] posted on 17-5-2014 at 11:04


Quote: Originally posted by woelen  
A really dangerous one is mixing of calcium hypochlorite and sodium dichlorocyanurate.

The most insidious of this reaction is that it is with commonly available chemicals, which both are used in exactly the same application, are sold in identical jars. One hardware store has the dichloroisocyanurate, the other has calcium hypochlorite and sometimes they switch over time, probably depending on the margin they can realize with the product.


Woelen,
Somehow I overlooked your comment until now. That is a fascinating observation. Exactly what I had in mind when I started this thread.
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AJKOER
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[*] posted on 25-5-2014 at 17:56


Quote: Originally posted by Zyklonb  
Quote: Originally posted by Brain&Force  
You missed the simple one...bleach and ammonia.

Also bleach + hydrochloric acid. Although chlorine isn't quite as bad as chloralamine, both would be bad if made on accident.:o


Actually, in my opinion, NH2Cl can be an extremely dangerous threat as I once reported on SM, it can attenuate (greatly enhance) the poisonous properties of other compounds. I vaguely recall an account of where Chlorine bleach and ammonia spill occurred in an industrial accident. The Chloramine formed also came into contact with Methyl alcohol. There was a report of a mass blinding of workers.

I will let others contemplate other even more dangerous compounds than CH3OH and the possible consequences of their interaction with Chloramine.

[EDIT] As a sidebar, I find comical the whitewash of toxicity issues associated with Chloramine following its regulatory approval in some jurisdictions for drinking water (I remember, for example, what Wikipedia on Chloramine use to say on its toxic nature). If your water is treated with NH2Cl, I would not recommend it for drinking or even bathing. It is, however, legally suitable for advocating politicians, obnoxious in-laws and the like.

Here is a source link to many studies relating to Chloramine and drinking water http://www.vce.org/ChloramineScience/ChloramineScience.html

A Chloramine scandal sometime in the future relating as to how it 'unknowingly' heightens toxiticity relating to Pb, haloacetonitriles and my favorite, inflammatory bowel disease? Chloramination also appears to increase the formation of iodo-acids, iodo-THMs, and NDMA and other nitrosamines, relative to chlorine, and the likelihood of gastric cancers and DNA damage (all noted in sources per link provided above).

[Edited on 26-5-2014 by AJKOER]
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Metacelsus
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[*] posted on 26-5-2014 at 14:09
pedantry


Quote: Originally posted by AJKOER  
attenuate (greatly enhance)


Wrong.

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/attenuate




As below, so above.

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AJKOER
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[*] posted on 26-5-2014 at 18:32


The term was not mine, but the choice of my original technical reference.

While you may be correct on the misuse of the word 'attenuate' based on conventional usage, but in the sciences, the term apparently has a richer meaning. For example, one technical source states (see http://www.online-medical-dictionary.org/definitions-a/atten... ):

"Attenuated Vaccines
Live Vaccines prepared from microorganisms which have undergone physical adaptation (e.g., by Radiation or Temperature Conditioning) or Serial Passage in Laboratory Animal hosts or infected Tissue/Cell Cultures, in order to produce a virulent mutant strains capable of inducing protective Immunity."

Also, per http://ask.reference.com/web?q=What%20Is%20Attenuation?&... to quote:

"What is Attenuation?
The percentage of sugar that a yeast will be able to ferment. Low-attenuation yeast result in maltier beers. High-attentuation yeast results in drier, less sweet, beers. "

Also, per http://www.chemistry-dictionary.com/definition/attenuator.ph... to quote:

"Attenuator
1) used in e.s.r, the attenuation of the microwave power passing along a waveguide is achieved by means of a metal plate placed along the axis of the waveguide. The degree of attenuation increases as the plate is moved away from the wall of the waveguide toward the center. In IR and UV spectroscopy, the attenuator is a toothed comb, grid, or star arrangement introduced into one beam of a spectrometer, operated either automatically through an electronic servosystem, or manually to balance the radiation in both beams."

So one might, in more technical usage, ascribe to the term not just dilution, but in the context of a process of change, transfer or modification of the primary or correlated variable. Now, in the current case of Chloramine added to other toxic compounds, there is no doubt that the NH2Cl by mixing is itself diluted, but poisonous properties are apparently transported (compounded) in the process. Interestingly, high attenuation yeast example refers not to yeast concentration specifically, but high sugar conversion rates to alcohol. Similarly, associated high attenuation of Chloramine and Methanol may not be refering to the dilution of NH2Cl, but the elevated toxicity level via the significant incorporation of CH3OH.

[Edited on 27-5-2014 by AJKOER]
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PHILOU Zrealone
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[*] posted on 27-5-2014 at 04:54


This link about Dangerous chemical reaction from INRS is a good pdf compilation of dangerous reactions...a bit more documented than "Hazads in the chemical laboratory" book from the Chemical Society but in french.

INRS





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[*] posted on 28-5-2014 at 04:50


Whatever you do, when washing silver nitrate down the sides of a beaker, don't mistakenly grab the denatured ethanol wash bottle instead of the DI water. Makes for an interesting few minutes before you drown the whole mess. Luckily I realized what I had done almost immediately.
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[*] posted on 11-9-2014 at 06:28


Ammonium Nitrate + Calcium hypo Chlorite will react explosively. The moment it picks moisture. Found that the hard way grinding HTH with a AN contanimated pestle!
I was 17:)
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[*] posted on 11-9-2014 at 10:48


Quote: Originally posted by Blinded  
Ammonium Nitrate + Calcium hypo Chlorite will react explosively. The moment it picks moisture. Found that the hard way grinding HTH with a AN contanimated pestle!
I was 17:)


And you were blinded I take it?
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[*] posted on 11-9-2014 at 12:27


Quote: Originally posted by numos  
According to Wikipedia, a reaction occurs between ethylene and disulfur dichloride or sulfur dichloride to form mustard gas. I have no wish to try this, so can anyone confirm? Both these chemicals don't seem too exotic, although I don't know how anyone could accidently combine (bubble?) these together.


Its called the Levenstein Process for making mustard gas. In WWI the chlorination of the sulfur and then the alkylation of the dichloride was all done in one large vessel in two steps. Made a crude smelly product, which had collodial sulfur suspended in it, which settled out later and distrubed the ballistics of artillery shells. Distillation to purify was added later.

A more plausible inadvertent mustard gas producing reaction is HCl with thiodiglycol (2,2-thiodiethanol or TDE) a solvent used in textile sizing and ball point ink.

This was the preferred method of making it after the Levenstein Process was abandoned. Field converting reactors were even developed, so mustard gas could be made close to the combat zone and not shipped (see Bari Harbor).

You can find thiodiglycol for sale on eBay right now.
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[*] posted on 11-9-2014 at 17:07


Some ball point ink and HCl forming small amounts of sulfur mustards..... How not to clean ink from clothes!(not that you would... And hopefully you'd wash it after adding HCl....)

But, still a great addition to this thread
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[*] posted on 11-9-2014 at 23:06


Quote: Originally posted by Tdep  
Some ball point ink and HCl forming small amounts of sulfur mustards..... How not to clean ink from clothes!(not that you would... And hopefully you'd wash it after adding HCl....)


Both cellulose and protein are hydrolyzed by HCl.

Which synthetic textiles, if any, are resistant to HCl?
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[*] posted on 12-9-2014 at 13:58



Would Chlorates and Copper Sulphate count? (or hypochlorates).
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smile.gif posted on 14-9-2014 at 13:57
Nitrogen triiodide


Nitrogen triiodide could be pretty hazardous to the unexpectant. Made by simply mixing iodine with ammonia and leaving the filtered product to dry, a touch sensitive explosive is produced from simple chemicals that are also easily obtainable. Although Iodine in some countries is somewhat harder to buy than it used to be.
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[*] posted on 4-11-2014 at 23:48


60% Hydrogen peroxide and wood after watching someone accidentally spill it on a wooden pallet and not bother to clean up. Instant fire.
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[*] posted on 6-11-2014 at 01:09


From my experience when I was younger..(15ish)

acetone and hydrogen peroxide.

which makes acetone peroxide. All I can say that stuff is rather unstable. haven't touched the stuff since.




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