Precipitate Comparison Test; Borax and Sea Salt with Calcium Silicate

I perform a quick precipitate comparison between borax and sea salt with calcium silicate. The difference is startling to say the least.





I note that much of the precipitate has got to be the eroded material from one of the plates. This can only mean that there is a high concentration of Chromium in the sea salt sample and a simple 1/4 teaspoon of ferrous sulfate will not be enough to reduce the Cr(VI) to Cr(III).

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After Electrolysis Observations, Sea Salt and Calcium Silicate
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After Electrolysis Observations; Sea Salt & Calcium Silicate

I make some significant observations regarding sea salt and calcium silicate.





My Observations

1. The amount of particulate is extreme and has a dark almost black appearance.

2. CLR does NOT cleanup the plates worth a darn.

3. The Positive(?) plate is eroded pretty badly. The erosion is most notable along the plate edges and pitting pretty bad on the side of the plate facing the negative plate.

4. The gunk even blackens the CLR.

5. The temperature electrode was pitted as well.

6. I suspect if there ever was a candidate for Cr(VI) or Hexavalent Chromium reduction, this sample is it. The mere evidence of erosion of one of the plates is proof enough that there is significant chromium in the particulate.

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Adjusting the Recipe for Reducing Hexevalent Chromium in Vinegar

I take the time to adjust the recipe for reducing hexevalent chromium in vinegar and record the results.



My Observations

1. It takes quite a bit more calcium hydroxide to cause seperation of the particulates. 6-6 1/2 Tablespoons versus 1/2 Tablespoon.

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Hexavalent Chormium Initial Test

I conducted an observational test of adding ferrous sulfate and calcium hydroxide (lime) to my water samples in order to reduce the Hexavalent Chromium, Cr(VI) to Trivalent Chromium, Cr(III).




My Observations

1. The sludge forms as predicted in the research in three of the four tests.

2. The failed test involved vinegar in 5% concentration. I anticipate the acidity of the water affected the formation of sludge, so the next test will adjust the amount of lime in an attempt to neutralize the acid.

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Reducing Hexavalent Chromium in Waste Water

UPDATED: 4 Aug 08

I had a viewer on YouTube leave me a comment about the dangers of Hexavalent Chromium in the waste water of my Hydroxy experiments. This made me concerned about what it was I was doing, but the warning only told me to watch the movie "Erin Brokovich" to see how bad it was. Oh, and don't throw away the water.

Well, rather than rely on a movie I decide to find out what OSHA had to say about it. Essientially Hexevalent Chromium, Cr(VI) is a known carcinogen which causes cancer over long periods of exposure. It also causes cell necropsy in the lungs when inhaled. Woah! More reading indicates that the acceptable levels of exposure are set pretty low. This is unlike Trivalent Chromium, Cr(III) which is an essiential trace element.

Now that I know what kind of problem I'm dealing with, I decided to see if there is an industry solution out there. Thus the digging begins and about 2 days later the result I'm looking for pops out at me and the rest can be pieced together pretty quickly. namely, that Fe(II) can be used to reduce Cr(VI) to CR(III). Way cool! Now what does that mean to me?

More digging reveals this adobe file.Tertiary Treatment Chemical Treatment. The third paragraph, titled "Removal of Hexavalent Chromium" contained everything I needed to know about the subject, namely to reduce Cr(VI) I need to add Ferrous Sulfate and Lime to the water and let it sit awhile. It also recommended making sure 5 or 6 atoms of Fe(II) to one atom of Cr(VI) will allow the reduction to occur in timely fashion.

The chemical process is described thus:

Cr⁶⁺ + 3Fe²⁺ → Cr³⁺ + 3Fe³⁺

Cr³⁺ + 3 OH → Cr(OH)₃

Fe³⁺ + 3 OH → Fe(OH)₃

So in reading this I see that for every Chromium atom I need 6 Ferrous atoms, and I need three lime molecules for each Fe & Cr. The rough recipe then is 1Cr + 6FeSO4 + 21CaOH. This means for each 1/4 teaspoon of FeSO4 I also need to estimate about 1 teaspoon of lime for the mix. This is a slightly more lime than needed, but that should be fine. The estimate doesn't take into account any side reactions with the electrolyte itself.

From knowledge comes planning and from planning comes action. More to my line of thinking. So I know what the problem is (Cr(VI) is bad), and I know what the plan is(reduce it to Cr(III)). What's left? I need to buy the Ferrous Sulfate and Calcium Hydroxide and begin treating my waste water with it.

To solve this problem, I did some more digging and found The San Jose Scientific web site which sells lab grade ferrus sulfate in 100 gram and 500 gram increments for $8.95 or $21.50 plus shipping.

And here's a site to get the lime: hvchemical.com.

Lastly the MSDS sheet for the lime sold at hvchemical.com.

I've begun Cr(VI reduction studies on my waste water and subsequent articles record what I've done to date.

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