John paul III
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Making silane from calcium silicide
Im looking forward to synthesizing silane from Ca2Si
I realize how dangerous this compound is, and im only going to make a tiny amount, burning it immediately
The process should be analogous to the Mg2Si reaction:
Mg2Si + 4HCl = SiH4 + 2MgCl2
My question is, can I use HNO3, which I have a lot of, or is the hydrochloric acid necessary?
[Edited on 23-5-2018 by John paul III]
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unionised
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HNO3 might oxidise the silane.
Vinegar would probably do the job.
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aga
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Silane spontaneously combusts explosively in air doesn't it ?
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unionised
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Yes.
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aga
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John paul III's photos after he's done this will be awesome.
Looking forward to seeing those photos.
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MrHomeScientist
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How are you making the calcium silicide? Or are you buying it someplace?
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MineMan
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The higher molecular wight silanes are being investigated for propellants and scram jets... as they are liquid and can combust in nitrogen too...
Not much information can be found about them, which makes me think its been quite for a reason... perhaps it does work very well for military fuel...
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gatosgr
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Silane gas is a very nasty chemical.
Silicone fluid are also combustible.
[Edited on 25-10-2018 by gatosgr]
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Ubya
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i can't see why calcium should be better, magnesium silicide is easy to make in the small quantities you need, it's a well known reaction and then
magnesium is easier to find and cheaper.
about the acid, maybe HNO3 can oxidise silane directly, or maybe not if diluted enough, anyway it would be a waste of precious nitric acid, HCl or
sulphuric acid is ok for this task
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phlogiston
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Interesting, but are you sure the reaction produces silane at all?
IIRC acid hydrolysis of calcium silicides yields polysilicon hydrides and/or siloxene.
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"If a rocket goes up, who cares where it comes down, that's not my concern said Wernher von Braun" - Tom Lehrer
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