citric acid

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citric acid

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  • #26853
    Philip Burley
    Participant
      @philipburley44197
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      #430154
      Philip Burley
      Participant
        @philipburley44197

        A couple of weeks ago I made a mix of citric acid from powder , I used it for cleaning some copper parts before I soldered them . Today I took the lid off to use it again and found it contaminated with a lot of small black balls of something . I would have thought that the mildly acid solution would kill off any fungus etc Any ideas what this might be ?

        Phil

        #430157
        Neil Wyatt
        Moderator
          @neilwyatt

          Probably fungus… citric acid a.k.a. vitamin C isn't very toxic and in dilute form it's probably even food source for some things.

          Neil

          #430158
          Michael Gilligan
          Participant
            @michaelgilligan61133
            Posted by Neil Wyatt on 23/09/2019 17:52:17:

            … citric acid a.k.a. vitamin C …

            .

            dont know Really ?

            MichaelG.

            .

            https://www.uwhealth.org/files/uwhealth/docs/pdf/kidney_citric_acid.pdf

            Edited By Michael Gilligan on 23/09/2019 18:03:19

            #430161
            Michael Cox 1
            Participant
              @michaelcox1

              Vitamin C is ascorbic acid.

              #430165
              SillyOldDuffer
              Moderator
                @sillyoldduffer
                Posted by Philip Burley on 23/09/2019 17:26:26:

                A couple of weeks ago I made a mix of citric acid from powder , I used it for cleaning some copper parts before I soldered them . Today I took the lid off to use it again and found it contaminated with a lot of small black balls of something . I would have thought that the mildly acid solution would kill off any fungus etc Any ideas what this might be ?

                Phil

                Fungus and bacteria having a feast probably. Citric Acid is common in many fruits and edible. The crystals are fairly resistant to hungry bugs but add water and Citric Acid goes off just like a rotting Lemon or Lime.

                'Acid' always sounds a scary but most of them are weaklings. Citric is one of the mild organic acids: it's not in the same league as Sulphuric, Hydrochloric, or Nitric which are strong mineral acids.

                Dave

                #430170
                Philip Burley
                Participant
                  @philipburley44197

                  So should I dump this and mix some fresh , or carry on using it , Will it still have the cleaning effect ? Should I have made a stronger mix ?

                  Phil

                  #430171
                  JA
                  Participant
                    @ja

                    I would guess it is a fungus or some form of lower life. These can turn up in unexpected places such as in petrol and aviation fuel.

                    Why don't you just try using your citric acid. It will either work or not work. What ever it is will not eat your copper.

                    Fungi are more likely to be killed by copper than citric acid.

                    JA

                    Edited By JA on 23/09/2019 19:05:47

                    #430172
                    Howard Lewis
                    Participant
                      @howardlewis46836

                      Amazing where fungi will grow.

                      At school, we found that the winchester of fuming sulphuric acid had a white fungus growing in it. In THAT environment?

                      Try out your solution on a some metal. If it works satisfactorily, use it.

                      If it doesn't, dispose of it safely

                      Howard

                      #430182
                      Hacksaw
                      Participant
                        @hacksaw

                        If it tastes mouldy it probably is

                        #430206
                        Enough!
                        Participant
                          @enough
                          Posted by Neil Wyatt on 23/09/2019 17:52:17:

                          citric acid ……. it's probably even food source for some things.

                          Like humans?

                          wink

                          #430209
                          Michael Gilligan
                          Participant
                            @michaelgilligan61133
                            Posted by Philip Burley on 23/09/2019 17:26:26:

                            A couple of weeks ago I made a mix of citric acid from powder , I used it for cleaning some copper parts before I soldered them . Today I took the lid off to use it again and found it contaminated with a lot of small black balls of something . I would have thought that the mildly acid solution would kill off any fungus etc Any ideas what this might be ?

                            Phil

                            .

                            Possibly aspergillus niger, which [oddly enough] is used in the production of Citric Acid

                            Photos, or a rough estimate of size might help.

                            MichaelG.

                            #430220
                            James Alford
                            Participant
                              @jamesalford67616

                              I used citric acid to pickle copper a lot a while ago. It regularly grew mould on the surface, irrespective of the strength of the solution. However, it worked just as well with or without the fur coat. It just looked a bit grim.

                              James.

                              #430225
                              Clive India
                              Participant
                                @cliveindia

                                Adding a small amount of bleach fixes the mould problem for me.

                                Edited By Clive India on 24/09/2019 07:58:27

                                #430237
                                thaiguzzi
                                Participant
                                  @thaiguzzi
                                  Posted by Philip Burley on 23/09/2019 18:52:38:

                                  So should I dump this and mix some fresh , or carry on using it , Will it still have the cleaning effect ? Should I have made a stronger mix ?

                                  Phil

                                  Nah, add a double Vodka in there, it'll be fine…

                                  #430244
                                  Neil Wyatt
                                  Moderator
                                    @neilwyatt
                                    Posted by Michael Cox 1 on 23/09/2019 18:16:10:

                                    Vitamin C is ascorbic acid.

                                    D'oh! Engage brain before keyboard…

                                    #430248
                                    Michael Gilligan
                                    Participant
                                      @michaelgilligan61133
                                      Posted by Neil Wyatt on 24/09/2019 09:51:07:

                                      Posted by Michael Cox 1 on 23/09/2019 18:16:10:

                                      Vitamin C is ascorbic acid.

                                      D'oh! Engage brain before keyboard…

                                      .

                                      Sulking … Why does Michael Cox get the credit ?

                                      sad

                                      #430261
                                      JA
                                      Participant
                                        @ja
                                        Posted by Howard Lewis on 23/09/2019 19:05:31:

                                        Try out your solution on a some metal. If it works satisfactorily, use it.

                                        If it doesn't, dispose of it safely

                                        Howard

                                        If it just citric acid I guess you pour it down the sink.

                                        My pickling acid, made from powder bought from CuP Alloys, is now a nice green colour since used acid is returned to bottle. I guess the green is copper citrate. I would think the powder I bought contained a biocide since I never had anything grow in the liquid.

                                        JA

                                        #430280
                                        Tim Stevens
                                        Participant
                                          @timstevens64731

                                          I wonder if the 'mould' seen by Howard Lewis was actually crystals of SO3, and not a fungus at all. Fuming H2SO4 is so eager to combine with the tiniest speck of water that it would not make a good environment for anything living – mould, germ, or virus. Just because it looked fluffy, do not be misled.

                                          Cheers Tim

                                          #430365
                                          Clive India
                                          Participant
                                            @cliveindia
                                            Posted by Clive India on 24/09/2019 07:54:51:

                                            Adding a small amount of bleach fixes the mould problem for me.

                                            Just a reminder wink

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