Serious chemical reaction

H

hellgap

Joined
Dec 17, 2008
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I was trying to retore tha natural color abk into the horn I was working on a handle. So I decided to use the chemical POTASIUM PERMANGINATE. Then I thought I would add some dark brown fiebings dye. and about 1/2 oz of water. Well I stirred it up dipped the horn while wearing rubber gloves and wiped the excess off and redid the horn . Ten all of a sudden the solution Heated up to boiling temperature and boiled out of the container and solidified instantly. Just thought Ide let ya all know. the horn looks good but ill try something different next time.
 
hellgap said:
I was trying to retore tha natural color abk into the horn I was working on a handle. So I decided to use the chemical POTASIUM PERMANGINATE. Then I thought I would add some dark brown fiebings dye. and about 1/2 oz of water. Well I stirred it up dipped the horn while wearing rubber gloves and wiped the excess off and redid the horn . Ten all of a sudden the solution Heated up to boiling temperature and boiled out of the container and solidified instantly. Just thought Ide let ya all know. the horn looks good but ill try something different next time.
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I would suggest it was most likely the dye or should I say a chemical in the dye that created the problem. I buy potassium pergamate in powder form and it has to be mixed with water to make a liquid.
I once mixed about four lbs. of Morton's pool salt into a gallon of hot water and then added vinegar. :eek: I was trying to create my own enchant. I hung a blade on piece of what I thought was stainless wire in a PVC tube to etch the blade overnight. By morning the enchant had reacted with the wire and eat small grains out of the metal in the wire and as those small grains rolled down the blade it actually eat metal from the carbon steel blade. I had to dilute with a lot of water to get it down to a useable enchant!
Guess it goes to say what has already been said, “mixing chemicals can be dangerous”! Especially when you’re not a chemist or never paid attention in lab at school! I was told I had created an acid with the salt and vinegar mix :foot: beats me! :D
 
i know p.p. mixed with certain things is bad... have you ever seen what that stuff does when you take a pile of dry crystals and put a few drops of glycerine on top?

it burst into a white hot flame letting off somenasty purple smoke.. not good at all.
 
Potassium permanganate is a very strong oxidizer. What probably happened is that the potassium permanganate oxidized some organic compounds in the dye, generating the heat.

I have done exactly what Michael describes (a few drops of glycerine on a small pile of powdered potassium permanganate)many times when I was younger and a bit of a pyromaniac. :eek:

Please be careful with it.

Ric
 
Save that glycerine for mixing with a solution of 2 parts fuming sulfuric acid and 1 part nitric acid. No, wait don't do that.
 
do you find potassium permanganate locally, or online? if local where you do look for it?
 
Nicely dangerous! You are lucky it didn't spew all over and nail you in the face and blind you. If one mixes the solid and alcohol based dye, it could cause a fire.

Hopefully this will cause people to be more careful with chemicals when they don't understand their properties.
On the other hand, I always enjoy hearing about new Darwin Award candidates.... ;)
 
I was making an attempt to become a taxidermist when I was 17 and did a few things that I thought turned out well .COnsidering I didnt know was doing. Ibout the potasium permanginate from the local pharmasist . It is a chemical farmers put in chicken watering dish but makes horn turn brown when its white fronm the sun, 1 coat is ok but 2 coats really makes them nice. All I do is buff the horn with brown wax on the buffer and its perfect.
 
ib2v4u said:
Save that glycerine for mixing with a solution of 2 parts fuming sulfuric acid and 1 part nitric acid. No, wait don't do that.
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I'm a chemical engineer, and you have a death wish. :D

Coating the inside of a glass bottle with gasoline and putting in 4 drops of saturated KMNO4 solution, and then throwing the whole works against a tree might be fun, of course I wouldn't know. ;)
 
okzj said:
I'm a chemical engineer, and you have a death wish. :D
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Slow and gentle below 40f. Grandpa showed me how. Mom could get so mad at Grandpa. Much better than some other mixtures I know about. Some common stuff is extremely unstable when mixed. Take peroxide and acetone for example, never ever do that. Others are very deadly in other ways. Like bleaches and drain cleaners. Point is there are plenty of common chemicals that when mixed together have some very deadly results. Just because things work well for similar purposes does not mean you should mix them. Explosions, fires, and toxic gasses are possible with some of the stuff many people have in the cabinet under the kitchen sink. As a chemical engineer, a hardware stores must give you nightmares
 
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I recommend that you all obtain and study a current Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for any material you use in your shop.

Read and heed the MSDS if you value your butt, your shop, your family.

For example, an MSDS for potassium permanganate states (among other things):

"DANGER! STRONG OXIDIZER. CONTACT WITH OTHER MATERIAL MAY CAUSE FIRE. CORROSIVE. CAUSES BURNS TO ANY AREA OF CONTACT. HARMFUL IF SWALLOWED OR INHALED."

There is a lot more, but this should give you the picture. (When I read an MSDS, I find it instructive to imagine someone shouting, "DUMBASS!" frequently.)

If you use a grinder, you would do well to obtain and study the MSDS for the materials you grind (steel, wood, micarta, etc.) and see what they have to say about hazardous dust. And then study up on shop ventilation and respirators, because there is no one size that fits all.
 
"Take peroxide and acetone for example, never ever do that."
by ib2v4u
.......Now why'd you have to go and say that???I've got plenty of both and the whole day off:rolleyes::D
 
okzj said:
I'm a chemical engineer, and you have a death wish. :D

Coating the inside of a glass bottle with gasoline and putting in 4 drops of saturated KMNO4 solution, and then throwing the whole works against a tree might be fun, of course I wouldn't know. ;)
Click to expand...

I was going to Say the same thing, a little home brue nitro. I have heard about the gas and KMNO4 befor but never tryied it.
 
Shawn fu said:
"Take peroxide and acetone for example, never ever do that."
by ib2v4u
.......Now why'd you have to go and say that???I've got plenty of both and the whole day off:rolleyes::D
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SERIOUSLY DO NOT DO THIS. EXTREMELY UNSTABLE. LOOKING AT IT COULD CAUSE BAD STUFF TO HAPPEN! Think about it, peroxide, as in many oxygen atoms and acetone, as in much much fuel. Just putting the lid on the jar could cause an explosion.
 
no pun intended but you're just feeding the fire ; )

i think we should stop this thread... people are going to keep saying "you know should never do..." then the people with no self control will do it... untill they blow themselves up..

on second though.....

good times
 
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