JibbyDee
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KOH reacted with paper
I improvised a weigh boat out of a piece of paper and used it to weigh out some KOH. There was a flake or two left in the weight boat. An hour later
the KOH had turned into a yellow liquid. There was no water there to begin with. Did the KOH absorb the moisture from the paper or something? If so,
what caused the yellow color?
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Bot0nist
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KOH is very hygroscopic and will readily absorb enough moisture from the environment to dissolve itself. The formed KOH solution surly affected the
paper. It's used as drain opener (NaOH maybe) and will break down many organics.
It's hygroscopic nature is what makes thoroughly dried KOH a great desiccant.
[Edited on 20-1-2012 by Bot0nist]
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AirCowPeaCock
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isn't their a name for that, when a substance is so hydroscopic it will form a solution from atmospheric moisture?
and I've never heard of KOH as a drain cleaner, but NaOH is definitely used as drain cleaner.
[Edited on 1-20-2012 by AirCowPeaCock]
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AirCowPeaCock
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Wait I found it, the property is called Deliquescey(?)..some alteration of Deliquescent
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Bot0nist
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NaOH is preferable for it's increase solubility. KOH retains the same caustic properties though.
U.T.F.S.E. and learn the joys of autodidacticism!
Don't judge each day only by the harvest you reap, but also by the seeds you sow.
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AirCowPeaCock
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according to the wiki, KOH has increased solubility..I think, let me double check
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AirCowPeaCock
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Yup (well at-least probably), according to wiki
NaOH 1110 g dm-3 (at 20 °C)
KOH 1210 g/L (25 °C)
is NaOH cheaper perhaps?
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Bot0nist
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Yup, sorry, your right.
"KOH and NaOH can be used interchangeably for a number of applications, although in industry, NaOH is preferred because of its lower cost."-wiki
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Don't judge each day only by the harvest you reap, but also by the seeds you sow.
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Endimion17
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It's an intermediate product in the formation of viscose.
You can make it by reacting cellulose with any strong base (that gives something that could be called natron cellulose, if the base was NaOH), then
dissolving the compound with carbon disulphide which takes quite some time.
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AirCowPeaCock
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Sounds cool, I'm thinking of compiling a polymer project for school, I guess so far I have rayon and polycarbonate, unfortunately I can't make my
favorite plastic, HDPE.. but that's off topic
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