Nitric acid safety precautions

[danny987]

Hey. I'm just starting my research on this chemical and i thought safety would be a good start. What sort of safety precautions do you take when handling it? assume my acid is 50% dilute

 

[danny987]

also what is SMB

 

[butcher]

general precautions as with most acids, dont leave were children can get to it, or your pets may break bottle etc. dont spill it on yourself, good Idea to protect your eyes and body from chemical burns, do not breath the NOx fumes generated when disolving metals these can be very dangerous, use fume hood or good ventaltion outdoors, be careful of spills,this acid can nitrate some things making them prone to fire or explosion , so learn about its chemistry, take caution on what you mix with it as with many chemical reactions you do not want to make something dangerous, and this is one that they make explosives from,best not to use it near metal objects you care about (like in your tool shed, or near your neighbors new car, it likes to dissolve metals),look up MSDS, with acids good Idea to keep baking soda nearby for incidents,protect your nitric from light it can ruin it, store only in proper containers, if you havent used it on metals start off in small batches untill you know how it reacts, some metals can boil heat fume boil over violently, putting off some deadly brown fumes dont stand there and breath them, take more caution with powder metals can really react, when boiling this acid (like when eliminating it from aqua regia) it can concentrate to a certain azeotrope and foam over in pot, so lower heat and watching the pot boil is a good idea,hope this answers some of your question.I cant think of much else right now.

there is never enough talk about safety Who can add to this?

 

[danny987]

What would you recommend to cover my body? Would a regular carhart be enough to protect my skin in case of a spill? (of course it could eventually burn through it but i could take it off and rinse my body in time) Or do i need some sort of lab apron?

 

[lazersteve]

Danny,

Welcome to the forum.

The Guided Tour Link in my signature line below will get you acquainted with some common forum abbreviations and safety tips.

Welcome aboard,

Steve

 

[aflacglobal]

Here's a good example of safety issues. Nitric is mean. :?