Need a HCN gas detector

[galenrog]

$400 is cheap insurance.

Be well.

 

[Yggdrasil]

Very quick up date - Saturday I stared the recovery of the gold from the PGC salts I received

I have finished 5 batches & have 3 left to do (doing 5 liter batches with 200 grams of the salt dissolved in each batch)

Concerning the HCN detector - all work has gone without incident - UNTIL yesterday morning wherein the detector was set off

So I am VERY GLAD that I spent the $400 for the detector - especially being as I am one of those people that DOES NOT smell HCN

I will post more details as to how & why the detector was set off - as well as details of project/process when I get more time which is likely to be another week (plus/minus)

Kurt

Looking forward for your details, be safe mate.

 

[anachronism]

The further you go with the electrolysis and turning the current up, and the lower the metal content gets the more HCN is gassed off.

 

[4metals]

UNTIL yesterday morning wherein the detector was set off

The detector went off but did the canary die?

Seriously what do you think tripped it and what concentration of CN tripped the detector to sound the alarm?

 

[Naughtius Maximus]

Have you tried Draeger?

I have worked with many companys that handle NaCN/KCN solutions and never saw a detector for it, as it is always handled in fume hood. Also you can smell the cyanide (that almond smell). If you can smell you need to take action, and perhaps get out.
I don't see a detector playing a role that your nose doesn't fullfill (If you can smell cyanide, some people can't)

Almonds and apple seeds contain cyanide as a biodefense. Peach pits and cashews too I believe.

 

[goldandsilver123]

All cashews nuts must be roasted because of the cyanide, even the "raw" ones are lightly rostead

 

[4metals]

Are you. guys implying Kurt was busy eating cashews and almonds instead of refining? Never eat in the presence of cyanide salts!!!!!!!

 

[Shark]

I’m pretty sure Kurt is smarter than eating while working with cyanide.

 

[anachronism]

The detector went off but did the canary die?

Seriously what do you think tripped it and what concentration of CN tripped the detector to sound the alarm?

Mines 8ppm as a warning (slow beeps) and 15ppm. Relates to max exposure time at those levels. In fairness to try to set one off you've got to have the sniffer right over a vessel. There's no point having one inside a hood whatsoever, they should be used for ambient (if that's the correct word) atmosphere in the work area.

 

[kurtak]

The detector went off but did the canary die?

Well - being as how I am the canary & typing this to report to the forum - no the canary did not die

That is the whole point of the HCN detector - to give you quick enough & early enough warning to back off FAST

The HCN detectors are made to detect "low" levels of the HCN & they do so " very quickly" (like almost instantly - if not instantly) for the very purpose of "warning" you to stay clear &/or back off NOW

Just watched this video which I found quite interesting (& informative as well)

https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervi...79DC91C791B57D8B4B0279DC91C791B5&&FORM=VRDGAR

Kurt

What I found interesting as well as informative about that video was the chart he showed at about 4:20

That chart shows the effects of HCN bases time exposed to HCN at different PPM of exposure

At 18 - 36 PPM you will only experience "slight" symptoms after several hours of exposure

At 45 - 54 PPM it is tolerable for 20 minutes to an hour "without" immediate or later effects

At around 100 PPM is when risk of death starts to become a concern but even then if you are exposed for half hour to an hour

135 PPM = death after 30 minutes

180 PPM = death in 10 minutes

270PPM = immediate death

That is the whole point of the HCN detector - to give you quick warning when it is detected at low PPMs so you can back away before being exposed for extended time &/or before the HCN reaches lethal levels --- especially if you are a person that does not sell it in the first place

Generally speaking the HCN does not just come roaring out of the solution when CN is dissolved in water (due to the high Ph) as was demonstrate in the video - it was gassing off HCN but it was gassing off "very" slow & he was having trouble getting it up to the 15 PPM he wanted for doing his "safe" HCN smell test --- so he adjusted the Ph down (with sulfuric acid) to get more HCN to gas off for his smell test

IMO he did a very well controlled test to see first if he could smell it & if so what it smelled like but also in a way to insure the PPM level was within safe levels

It is because of the safe levels vs the unsafe levels that fume control is very important & IMO - especially if you can not smell it - you work with a "low" level detection device

That is why the very first thing I did before starting this project was built a fume hood in a room that is about 6 foot wide by 14 foot long - the hood is about 2 foot deep with a 3 foot X 3 foot face & powered by an 8 inch blower with the vent duct going up 10 foot - this set up is providing enough negative pressure in the room that it literally sucks the door into the room shut - there is a 2 inch gap under the door so the hood is constantly drawing air "up" through the hood - it exchanges air in the room "very" quickly - the door into the room is about 5 foot from the hood face so can exit the room is about 3 steps

In other words - ALL safety precautions where put in place - including the HCN detector before starting in on this project

And for what it is worth - this is not my first time working with Cn which is why I took the time & investment to set up to do this safely

But you already know all of this 4metals so this was posted to provide more info to the members of this forum concerning safety when working with CN - so thanks for the question(s) 4 metals

My next post will be how I set off the detector - which I actually did deliberately as a test

I may not get to that post until tomorrow

Kurt

 

[justinhcase]

The most important safety precaution when working with cyanide is to have a second person monitoring the individual engaged in processing.
That person can be otherwise engaged, such as reading, if they are in a separate work area and maintain a good peripheral awareness of the worker's activity.
A rapid response and an appropriate first aid kit can make a lot of difference to an outcome.
I suppose having an actual "Canary" as a workplace pet would be considered a cruel safety measure by modern animal guidelines. Still, before the development of modern alarms, they were the industry standard.

 

[anachronism]

My next post will be how I set off the detector - which I actually did deliberately as a test

I may not get to that post until tomorrow

Kurt

I do it every single day to make sure it's working.