One thing we used to do a long time ago (and I have no data on this at
all; it was before I started keeping notebooks) was to add an ounce of
acetone to a working batch of Dektol 1:9. This had the effect of
increasing the pH (I'm only a high-school chemist 30 years post-graduate,
but I think it breaks down the sulfite resulting in NaOH in the soup).
The developer has that soapy feeling to it, and is quite a powerful
agent. If I recall correctly, this was the brainchild of a photochemical
whiz in the Bay Area in the '50's and 60's named Don Ross. Some of us
Gyro Gearloose types at San Francisco State used it for sheet film long
enough to satisfy ourselves that it did indeed work. Then most of us
went back to more boring developers.
I also have used the acetone method with pyro for many years. It's one
of my favorite developers, despite a dreadful sacrifice in film speed. I
don't recall film speed loss with the Dektol, though. Yes, I do work in
a wind tunnel. No. I don't sniff glue. I don't breath it, and I wear
gloves when I use it.
_Photographic Facts and Formulas_ recommended acetone only for glass
plates, because when it was published, filmbase dissolved in acetone.
For a long time now, they've been coating film on materials which are not
affected.
I've always wondered about the quantity of acetone in the Dektol formula.
"One ounce per working batch" is the best I've got. If we are using a
few ounces of Dektol in a tray to process one sheet of 4x5 film, that
doesn't seem right.
Larry Bullis
Skagit Valley College