Fyndium
International Hazard
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Intentional runaway test?
Doing a new exothermic oxidation I thought that what if a synthesis was ran to runaway to test its limits? Has anyone ever done this? Of course this
kind of testing would need a suitable place.
In general, is there a risk for explosive thermal runaway or is it just the good'ol geysir and messy aftermath?
I'm usually very conservative(scared) on pushing reactions and take more time than risk runaways if that is an option. Another thing I love in large
waterbaths: they allow temp control within 5C over several hours with manual adjustment and will turn from heat to cool at the moment the reaction
temp changes even a degree. Stirring of the bath has huge impact on thermal transmission rate and it can easily allow halving some things time like
additions etc.
[Edited on 28-2-2021 by Fyndium]
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zed
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Why yes.... Fyndium, such tests ARE occasionally run.
Seems to me, the events at Three Mile Island and possibly Chernobyl, were triggered by such tests.
But, perhaps I am mistaken. Maybe that was part of the plot of the now long forgotten movie "The China Syndrome".
[Edited on 1-3-2021 by zed]
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DraconicAcid
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I know I spent many trials trying to find a way to get the nitric acid oxidation of cyclohexanol to adipic acid to run without always turning into a
volcano.
Please remember: "Filtrate" is not a verb.
Write up your lab reports the way your instructor wants them, not the way your ex-instructor wants them.
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Texium (zts16)
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Quote: Originally posted by Fyndium  | Doing a new exothermic oxidation I thought that what if a synthesis was ran to runaway to test its limits? Has anyone ever done this? Of course this
kind of testing would need a suitable place.
In general, is there a risk for explosive thermal runaway or is it just the good'ol geysir and messy aftermath? |
I don't think there is a generalization that can be made. What is the specific reaction that you are wanting to test? That is
necessary information for knowing whether it will explode or just boil over.
The utility of such a test would be pretty marginal anyway. Testing it on a smaller scale than you intend to run it wouldn't be helpful, since
reactions are more sensitive to runaway at larger scales, and if you're going to test it at the scale that you actually want to run it at, you may as
well just try and do it right.
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