mauve powder/ mauve solution

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artart47

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Supporting Member
Joined
Feb 9, 2010
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Location
North Cape, wi
Hi, merry christmas all!
Just posting this to get any feedback/ opinions of what is causing the color
settled debris and filtrate from bucket used to depopulate small boards of plated pins and desolder smd's, mostly HCl and some rinse water went in it.
I brought powder/HCl to a simmer and decanted. powder was grey with just a hint of mauve color, decanted solution clear.
Washed with hot water same. But them i heated it with household ammonia and the powder turned very very mauve, solution was clear but over time, 24 hours,it started turning mauve, when i stirred it, it got very dark color!
I would be interested in your thoughts on what it is.
Thanks! artart47
 
Ammonia has only a couple of uses in refining and you should not stray from those few applications.

You don't add ammonia to heavy metal wastes. You have some potential to form explosive compounds.

Do not let what you have created dry out! Some compounds are explosive when wet!

Wait for some advice from one of the chemists that come here.
 
Hey, thanks for the warning info! I'm aware of that possibility and will make sure the solution doen't dry. I've never been aware of a dangerous wet compound to be concearned about. any details?
Thanks!
 
I'm no chemist and don't know the exact conditions to produce azides, but save the ammonia for silver chloride only. And convert it back to acidic as soon as possible.

Wait for some skilled advice.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead(II)_azide

Fix the link in your address bar to include all the letters. Or google directly lead azide.
 
qst42know said:
I'm no chemist and don't know the exact conditions to produce azides, but save the ammonia for silver chloride only. And convert it back to acidic as soon as possible.

Wait for some skilled advice.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead(II)_azide

Fix the link in your address bar to include all the letters. Or google directly lead azide.
Click to expand...

BAD BAD STUFF! :shock:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead(II)_azide
Lead azide reacts with copper, zinc, cadmium, or alloys containing these metals to form other azides. For example, copper azide is even more explosive and too sensitive to be used commercially.
 
When it turned black, you were already too late and in much trouble. Use an eyedropper, take one drop (or grain) and place it on a watch glass. Move the watch glass away from everything. Dry it, but don't touch it with your finger! This single drop is no more dangerous than a small firecracker. Strike a spark near it. If it doesn't pop like a firecracker, you are OK. But if it does pop---Fortunately for me, I tested a single grain that went off like nitro-glycerin. Had I skipped that test, I and my family might not be here today. Dr. Poe
 
Thanks Dr Poe!
I'll try That. You said a spark. I was thinking a stick match on a long stick. You know, when it was stirred, and the contents were moving around in the jar, the mauve powder is just loaded with gold. You can see it! I believe the powder is a metal/salt because it settles to the bottom really fast same time it takes the gold. I was trying to see if i could get a salt to form that is water soluable so i can separate it from the gold. HCl diden't dissolve anything, neither did ammonia. any Idea how to attack this?
Thanks. artart47
 
I suggest that you dissolve it into aqua regia, but first wet it good with HCl. I don't advise using peroxide this time. It might react badly with the ammonium ion. I prayed for your survival and safety. :!: Dr. Poe
 
I think you may just have solder salts (lead, tin) copper I chloride, and a little gold making a violet solution like purple of cassius (colloids of gold and tin).

Adding ammonia was not the best Idea.

(the dark solution you decanted earlier from these powders should also be acidified with HCL)

I would add HCL stir solution well, to rid solution of ammonia (neutralizing the ammonium base with the hydrochloric acid, forming ammonium chloride) (and bring powders to the acid side of pH scale), and making any amine you may have created safe.

You could test a crystal as Dr Poe suggests (I would do this just in case), but I believe washing in HCL should keep you out of trouble here, your test will tell for sure.

I would wash powder in water and sodium hydroxide after HCL treatment, rinsing out the water-soluble salts well.

Dry incinerate the powders (save or treat a little more).

Boiling wash in HCL to remove tin, and put copper powders into solution.
Boiling hot water washes to help remove lead.
Dry and incinerate powders again.
Then save these dry powders in a jar to treat for base metals and values later, (after you do some more studying).
 

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