Author Topic: Black color after adding some white table salt  (Read 979 times)

axkman

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Black color after adding some white table salt
« on: August 26, 2020, 08:35:13 PM »
Hi there!

My batch tasted a bit metallic so I tried a test with some of my solution and added a bit of white table salt. That solution directly turned black after some gentle moving the glass.
Whats wrong? Did the reducing agent not work properly?

I made my 20ppm batch with 500ml with 10 drops of 1mol electrolyte and after I heated a bit in microwave and put in 10 drops of 50/50 karo solution. It turned nice yellow, so I thought it would be an okay batch. But after it tastes a bit metallic.

Anyone?


axkman

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #1 on: August 26, 2020, 08:35:30 PM »
Different view

Offline SaltyCornflakes

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #2 on: August 26, 2020, 09:31:51 PM »
If it tastes metallic, that means there was an excess of silver ions that did not get reduced. Use some more reducer and/or make sure that you don't run the electrolysis too long. Generally you want to use a bit more reducing agent than is required, just to ensure full reduction.

Colloidal Silver turning turbid and grey when adding salt or acid is normal. Anything not gel-capped will react likewise, though not always at the same speed or with the same severity. This doesn't mean that it is unusable for drinking, but it's not ideal.

Offline cfnisbet

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #3 on: August 28, 2020, 10:21:21 AM »
It is also possible (and likely) that the salt broke the colloid, turning the whole thing into Ionic Silver Oxide.

axkman

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #4 on: September 08, 2020, 07:08:31 PM »
Hi guys!

Today I made a new 20ppm batch, but after doing a small bit of tapwater in a glass and 10ml of the 20ppm batch in it. It slowly turned pink color.
Does anyone know whats happening, why does it turn pink? I've never had this before.
*Edit:  The only thing I did different today is I used a very small copper wire for cathode. From old telephone cable.

Offline Gene

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #5 on: September 09, 2020, 12:16:39 AM »
Copper wire for a cathode is fine. Its what a lot of us use.

For Karo reducer, to reduce 500ml of 20PPM you only need about 0.625 drops of 50/50 so 10 as about 10x more than you need (I'd use 3-4 drops and call it even) but more reducer doesn't hurt anything.

Are you sure your current limiter is stable? Are you sure you're measuring your current correctly? Are you sure you're calculating the correct run time using Faraday's law and the constant current you're running at?

Oh yeah, are you sure your distilled water is good?  If its a name brand it probably is. Some guys have found off brands to not be 100% pure using a TDS meter.

axkman

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #6 on: September 09, 2020, 01:22:28 AM »
Thanks for your reply.

Hmm. Maybe my DW is not good. I dont have an TDS or EC meter available but ill try to order one.

My DW can is almost empty. I read somewhere on the forum that opened DW cans attract carbon dioxide orso and makes the ph lower. Maybe thats the problem.
Once my 1oz bullion bar arrives tomorrow I'll open my fresh DW can and see if things are going better. Its weird. I never hard it before that tapwater + a little bit of Colloidal Silver went pink :-)

Ps. I used 5 drops 1MOL sodium carbonate for 250ml DW. (I just wrote it down for extra information, haha)


Offline Gene

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #7 on: September 09, 2020, 05:28:55 AM »
Don't waste your money on a TDS meter.

Just buy quality DW.

Yes, DW absorbs CO2 from the air but it does that even while in a sealed plastic container. Most plastics are gas permeable.  Believe it or not, so is the aluminum they make soda cans out of. Thats why they're putting best by date codes on the cans. Over time, they lose their bubbles (seriously).  They tried to fix this in plastic soda bottles many years ago by making a sandwich of a couple different kinds of plastic (it worked) BUT it became a recycling nightmare.

The amount of electrolyte we use should more than compensate for whatever carbolic acid the DW has absorbed from the air.

CO2 dissolved in water is referred to as carbolic acid so you can see how it'd lower the PH of the water in the bottle.

Honestly I can't tell you whats wrong.

Did you thoroughly clean your beaker?  Dishwashing liquid and scrub it a bit and rinse and then put a little 3% hydrogen peroxide in and swirl it around all over to remove any silver that may have accumulated on the glass (it does over time - not a bad idea to do this every several batches) and then a couple rinses with DW to get the tap water out (you don't want any chlorine nor minerals hanging around).  It does start causing issues eventually because it works like a 3rd electrode.

When rinsing the container with DW, just put maybe an ounce in, cap it and shake it to get it to hit all the spots inside, spill out and do it a second time.

axkman

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #8 on: September 10, 2020, 02:24:04 PM »
Thank you!

Eh just as a question, if you Gene (and others) put a little Colloidal Silver in glas with low amount of tapwater, it doesnt turn pinkish?

Offline cfnisbet

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #9 on: September 10, 2020, 07:37:06 PM »
This depends very much on the nature of the water. Some rainwaters are very acidic. others are nearly neutral.

Offline SaltyCornflakes

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #10 on: September 12, 2020, 08:53:06 AM »
In my opinion it's normal that Karo reduced Colloidal Silver will not be the most stable when you mix it with other liquids. Glucose is a weak (but very fast) reducer that works best when paired with gelatin. Maltodextrin and cinnamon are stronger reducers that work better on their own. This means you may also see them react with liquids, but less so and / or slower. Some reaction is always going to happen.

Hell, just letting colloidal gold rest in an open glass overnight will sometimes make it turn a shade more purple. These are not perfectly stable compounds we're dealing with here. Careful storage is as much required as careful production.

Bad DW will mostly give you a more turbid product. I haven't heard of DW giving you a perfect product but then making it susceptible to other liquids. You will see it in the clarity of the product.

axkman

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Re: Black color after adding some white table salt
« Reply #11 on: September 12, 2020, 11:36:22 PM »
Thank for your replies!