Bad am fe cit?

Judy Seigel (jseigel@panix.com)
Mon, 8 Jan 1996 14:08:39 -0500 (EST)

Has anyone ever had an experience with bad ferric ammonium citrate? I'd
used up previous container, opened a new one yesterday -- a pound of the
"green scales" in a brown glass *sealed* bottle from Fisher Scientific.
It looked entirely normal. I used the open containers of potassium
ferricyanide and distilled water I'd been using.

Began making tests about an hour later, with the idea of getting two for
one -- not only testing the cool white vs black light bulbs, but the
"ripening" of cyanotype emulsion, since I have strong evidence that it's
much weaker/paler for at least the first day.

However, as soon as I dropped solution B (the k fe) into solution A in
the dish, it precipitated out dark blue. I coated the paper and made a
print of sorts, but with heavy fogging and weak tones. Made 3 more tests
at intervals, latest this AM, same results -- except last might even be
weaker. I remixed the potassium ferricyanide from another source,
results the same. Which leaves the ferric ammonium citrate.......

Any ideas?

Judy