sternman318
Hazard to Others
Posts: 121
Registered: 21-4-2011
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Drying Crystals
So I did a really poor recrystallization of ammonium nitrate from some ice packs ( the whole thing crystallized into a big chunk when it cooled haha).
I got some of the brown surfactant gunk out, but I will recrystallize some of it if I really want pure stuff. But, now I have a mass of crystals which
seem to be retaining some water. So i have two questions
1. If I cooled the crystals and rinsed them with cold distilled water, would I have to worry about losing lots of crystals? I am thinking this may
help remove some of the last bits of gunk that might be present
2. How do i go about driving out the rest of the water? If I put them in a beaker and heat them on a low heat on a hot plate, do you think that would
drive out the moisture?
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Bot0nist
International Hazard
Posts: 1559
Registered: 15-2-2011
Location: Right behind you.
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Mood: Streching my cotyledons.
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Since NH<sub>4</sub>NO<sub>3</sub> is very soluble in water you would lose a lot by rinsing with water. It is also very
hygroscopic, so once it is dried you will have to put it in a very sealed container to keep it that way.
My personal method for drying is:
Crush to a fine powder with a rolling pin. Spread out over the bottom of a pyrex dish.
Put in oven at 135F for 3 hours.
Re-crush and 'fluff' the powder to exposes any moisture that may have been trapped by slight melting in the oven.
Put in a 1 gallon sealed bag with an excess of a suitable dry desiccant over night.
Store in an air-tight container.
U.T.F.S.E. and learn the joys of autodidacticism!
Don't judge each day only by the harvest you reap, but also by the seeds you sow.
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