Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Please help me dispose of ferric chloride solution

seashell1982 - 26-6-2012 at 04:59

I added some ferric chloride solution to a solution of water and baking soda, hoping that an orange sludge would settle to the bottom leaving clear water to pour off. But after about 30 minutes not much has settled to the bottom except excess baking soda. Now I have a much larger orange solution. How do I dispose of this? Thanks.

plante1999 - 26-6-2012 at 05:03

You dispose of it in a black hole, no seriously this is not a very toxic waste but if you want to dispose of it you could dry your mixture, take the quake of iron waste and put it in your trash bin, it is not more dangerous than a salt/rust mixture.

seashell1982 - 26-6-2012 at 05:08

How would I dry this? It's about a liter. Or can I just dump it down the toilet? I'm concerned about dumping ferric chloride into copper pipes.

woelen - 26-6-2012 at 05:59

Dump it in the toilet and immediately flush the toilet. Flush the toilet another time and then no residue will remain and all iron(III) is diluted so much and neutralized by the bicarbonate that no harm to your pipes occurs. Iron salts are not particularly toxic and I feel not guilty if some of this is flushed down the drain.

seashell1982 - 26-6-2012 at 06:05

It looks like I was supposed to use sodium carbonate, not sodium bicarbonate. Is there anything toxic from this reaction?

NaHCO3 + FeCl3

ScienceSquirrel - 26-6-2012 at 06:10

I would just tip it down the toilet, it will not be significant by the time it mixes with all the other sewage. Iron is a common metal in the environment.

Endimion17 - 26-6-2012 at 06:37

No harm done. If it ends up in the sea, the phytoplankton will enjoy the extra desert.

ScienceSquirrel - 26-6-2012 at 06:53

I suspect that sewage contains several ppm of iron anyway from food, menstrual and other blood, etc.
It will just stick to the sludge in the sewage farm and end up being spread on the soil, dumped in to municipal compost, etc.

bquirky - 26-6-2012 at 07:21

ferric chloride is sometimes used in sewage treatment http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewage_treatment

it is also ocationaly used in the treatment of drinking water.

There is no reason not to flush it down the drain.


woelen - 26-6-2012 at 22:25

Quote: Originally posted by RisingSun96815  
It looks like I was supposed to use sodium carbonate, not sodium bicarbonate. Is there anything toxic from this reaction?

NaHCO3 + FeCl3
No, nothing toxic is formed in this reaction. Some CO2 is produced and a mix of iron chloride, carbonate and possibly hydroxide. As mentioned many times now, it is safe for you and the environment to dump this in the toilet.