From: Judy Seigel (jseigel@panix.com)
Date: 02/26/03-12:56:19 AM Z
On Fri, 21 Feb 2003, Katharine Thayer wrote:
> It seems that two separate issues may have got crossed in this
> discussion. I'm told on good authority that Liam wasn't advocating
> adding water to fresh acid but diluting spent acid with water, which is
> a different issue. I'm glad to be corrected on the point and to find
No, Liam wasn't doing that either. He had already diluted the acid... the
business about adding water was only in response to the out-of-the-blue
*accusation* that "somebody could" get a "runaway reaction" (not known
with those chemicals, so actually somebody probably COULDN'T) and in their
panic throw water into the acid. Liam's point was that even were that
(impossible thing) to occur, it STILL wasn't dangerous.
Liam also outlined with great care the method for neutralizing that (small
amount of) acid when the operation was over... by whiting. But checking
the original article just now (I forgot the term whiting), I see that that
part BEGAN with yet ANOTHER warning IN BOLD TYPE about care for fumes,
good light, good ventilation, gloves, eye protection (repeated & implied
throughout) etc. and AGAIN calling for 50 ccs in a one liter beaker.
With all the hoo-ha, I'd begun myself to think maybe it wasn't enough.
It was. MORE than.
But the power of suggestion over fact is .... interesting.
J.
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