Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Chemical reaction...

vampirexevipex - 19-3-2012 at 15:06

Ok i been trying to make hydrochlorite, so i mixed a chlorine pool agent wich contains 70% chloride and 30% boron sodium trichlorite, with water. And i boiled the solution untill everything dissolved. After boiling i noticed a foam (probably the boron) and filtered the solution, leaving behind the excess of the pool agent. And my question is: did i make HCl or not? Because since the sodium boron solution isnt water soluble, i should have left it behind in the filter right? Sorry for my english, it sucks.

weiming1998 - 20-3-2012 at 00:34

1, Boron sodium trichlorite? What is that? I googled and this compound does not exist.

2, Specify the chloride in the pool agent.

3, Sodium boron solution? Again, what is that?

4, You need a H+ source to make HCl, and I see no source mentioned. Maybe the H+ source is water, and you've made chlorine gas, but I doubt that.

Overall, please provide the chemical formula for this reaction.

vampirexevipex - 20-3-2012 at 03:03

Sorry my english spelling sucks, i translated it in google and its not sodium boron trichlorite its B4Na2O7, sorry i misspelled because i got confused with another pool agent, and mixed the names lol, and yes the Hidrogen source its water. Oh and what i meant by saying the boron sodium foam, its the Boron sodium Oxide foam. My english rly sucks....

[Edited on 22-02-12 by vampirexevipex]

weiming1998 - 20-3-2012 at 03:24

Quote: Originally posted by vampirexevipex  
Sorry my english spelling sucks, i translated it in google and its not sodium boron trichlorite its B2Na2O, sorry i misspelled because i got confused with another pool agent, and mixed the names lol, and yes the Hidrogen source its water. Oh and what i meant by saying the boron sodium foam, its the Boron sodium Oxide foam. My english rly sucks....


B2Na2O....I don't think that exists either. Na2O exists as an ionic compound. It is not an ion, thus having an oxidation state of 0. For B2Na2O to exist outside solution, the oxidation state of the various ions have to add up to 0. So cancelling out the Na2O, the two B ions must have an oxidation state of 0, which doesn't make sense for an ion except for very special exceptions (fluorine perchlorate comes into mind). Unless your pool chemical is a mix of boron and sodium oxide, I doubt that exists.

A quick search revealed boron sodium oxide to have the formula B5NaO8, and it is also called sodium pentaborate.
From what it is called and the formula, I can deduct that this is the salt of a compound that is intermediate between B2O3 and HBO2 (it is a compound made of two molecules of B2O3 and a molecule of HBO2.)

If your pool chemical was actually HB5O8, and NaB5O8 was insoluble in water, then it depends on whether HB5O8 is soluble in water. If it is, then you might have made HCl, but if it isn't, then you have not made HCl.

vampirexevipex - 20-3-2012 at 03:42

After a quick review of the product, its called "aquachem optimun chlorine granules" and its not B2Na2O, its actually B4Na2O7.

weiming1998 - 20-3-2012 at 04:38

Quote: Originally posted by vampirexevipex  
After a quick review of the product, its called "aquachem optimun chlorine granules" and its not B2Na2O, its actually B4Na2O7.


Oh! That's sodium tetraborate, or borax.
I understand now. But heating borax with a chloride that will form an insoluble borate will not produce HCl. The H2O cannot provide the + ions for this reaction because the H+ is much more strongly attracted to the OH- than the Cl-, unless you can thermally decompose the Cl- compound (FeCl3/AlCl3 hydrate), which will produce gaseous HCl, ready to be bubbled in water. A good way if you lack chemicals, but not a very efficient way of making HCl.

A better way would be to combine H2SO4/NaHSO4 and a chloride (commonly table salt) and bubbling the gases through a tube into some water. A novel synthesis is to react CaCl2 with oxalic acid. Of course, you can buy HCl at pool supply stores any time.

vampirexevipex - 20-3-2012 at 08:36

then what its the filtered solution i got? its kind of white

weiming1998 - 21-3-2012 at 00:40

Quote: Originally posted by vampirexevipex  
then what its the filtered solution i got? its kind of white


The filtered solution is definitely some sort of insoluble borate. What's left in the solution is sodium chloride, or table salt.