Where can you buy Hydrochloric acid in the UK?

[Beeezer]

I today's climate I'd have had armed police outside the door after blowing up a tree stump with weedkiller and sugar...

I had a police helicopter up in the air quite a few years ago for a similar incident……

 

[Ross365]

People may find it worthwhile to look at the "Explosive Precursors and Poisons Regulations", which list hydrochloric acid (>10%) as a poison under Section 7.2

https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...rs/supplying-explosives-precursors-and-poison

Quite a lot of things that used to be "common place" are now listed under those regs.

 

[Morrisman]

Be careful with HCL - gives off very nasty fumes - use only in well ventilated areas or with a full face gas mask.

I remember using it to clean rust off steel parts when I lived in the far east. I left an open bucket in my locked up (for the safety nazis) workshop while I went offshore for six weeks. When I got home again everything of bare steel in the workshop was covered in rust.

 

[tigdlo]

https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...rs/supplying-explosives-precursors-and-poison

Anyone know the difference between regulated and reportable? I have read it but it doesn't appear to explain that.

 

[500e]

Phosphoric acid is in there

 

[Bornfree]

We used to use 36% hydrochloric acid for descaling tube heat exchangers. That clears your nose when it hits the limescale

 

[voipio]

Anyone know the difference between regulated and reportable? I have read it but it doesn't appear to explain that.

These days, anything seems to be reportable. If you shout "bang" loudly enough, chances are there'll be an armed police response, with a bomb disposal unit not far behind!!! ;-))

 

[Wozzaaah]

I remember using it to clean rust off steel parts when I lived in the far east. I left an open bucket in my locked up (for the safety nazis) workshop while I went offshore for six weeks. When I got home again everything of bare steel in the workshop was covered in rust.

I had an open container of brick acid I’d used to clean some horseshoe, the fumes ruined the chrome on my spanners and the rollers on my mitre saw stand.

 

[Johnnybravo]

I remember using it to clean rust off steel parts when I lived in the far east. I left an open bucket in my locked up (for the safety nazis) workshop while I went offshore for six weeks. When I got home again everything of bare steel in the workshop was covered in rust.

Years ago a customer brought me the extruder from a secondhand plastic injection molding machine he had just bought. Boss was away on holiday, so I was in charge. Asked if I could get it apart as it was seized. Connected up the heaters etc and left it to warm up a couple of hours. Walked back in to find out it had been full of PVC. Acrid smoke everywhere
Came apart easy enough. Next day everything steel in the workshop was rusty. The workbenches looked like shadow boards as what ever had been on them had masked the steel from the rust. Boss wasn’t best impressed on his return

 

[pedrobedro]

Be careful with HCL - gives off very nasty fumes - use only in well ventilated areas or with a full face gas mask.

The steel firm I worked at in the 1970s had an on site acid descaling plant for rolled stainless after heat treatment. Safety was not a priority and the staff in there never wore masks or any thing other than big rubber gloves I know two of them died in their 50s from lung problems.

 

[James1979]

Tell me more how long in the acid and how long and in what to neutarilese it.

You need to play with it but I’ve a 20l container and tend to 3/4 fill that with water and fire in a decent glug of acid. That tends to take about 24 hours to de scale and de dross a 1/2” plate. If it fizzes when it goes in then that seems to be a good sign.

I then take it out and run it under the tap. I’ve another container I put the metal in and cover it with water. Tip in some bicarbonate (cheap as hell from cash and carry) till litmus strips show ph neutral.

Not very scientific but it works. You could probably get away with just rinsing it.

The acid particularly likes to eat the steel around the HAZ if it’s been flame / plasma cut so keep an eye on that

 

[Jim2007]

Hello,

This cupric chloride Jim's after is used by hobbyists because you can "regenerate" the solution by bubbling air though it and topping it off with a bit more HCL, someone on Instructables boldly claimed it's better than ferric chloride a few years ago and no one seems to have questioned it. Supposedly it's better because you never have to throw away old solution, you just bubble in air or add a splash of acid. Of course eventually you'll end up with a huge amount of etchant because you're never getting rid of the old copper ions, so it only makes sense for hobbyists doing very small quantities, doing it professionally you'll quickly have so much etchant that you'll still have to pay to dispose of it, so you may as well just use ferric chloride and not have to deal with rusty fumes.

This is correct, i was going to use ferric chloride, but then discovered this cupric chloride stuff, that sounded nice because you can easily regenerate it, and just for hobbyist use this sounds good.
However, if i cannot find the necessary chemicals, i will use ferric chloride, and @500e, i will certainly consider your offer.

Thanks all.

 

[Kram]

The idea you can regenerate it, is like saying you can regenerate petrol by pouring more in the tank but may aswell either recycle it or start with fresh
Copper chloride is just a half spent version of HCL, so if you get HCL, use it like that, its cleaner.
Both can be regenerated, or you can start with ferric chloride to make HCL.

In general, you can’t buy sulfuric acid, in any form, otherwise I could thicken it by increasing the concentration. For small galvanic experiments, you will have to issue a license.

With hydrochloric acid, in theory, you can make sulfuric acid, but this is a long fuss.

Buy copper sulphate and electrolyze it to plate out copper metal and sulphuric acid. 500g makes about 2 litres around 10% and is what I use for anodising.

Nitric can be easily but slowely made using a HV spark gap to oxidise nitrogen and bubble it through water to disolve it. The red fumes of nitric are extremely toxic.

 

[Sergei Slovenija]

Buy copper sulphate and electrolyze it to plate out copper metal and sulphuric acid. 500g makes about 2 litres around 10% and is what I use for anodising.

You can do it, but you don't want to. A lot of fuss.

 

[Misterg]

i was going to use ferric chloride, but then discovered this cupric chloride stuff, that sounded nice because you can easily regenerate it,

Ferric chloride lasts for absolutely ages in hobby use. Even when almost spent, it doesn't stop working - it just takes longer.

 

[Kram]

You can do it, but you don't want to. A lot of fuss.

Nah, with a lead anode, few minutes to set up and let it run until complete. With a graphite anode, yes its a lot of fuss replacing graphite and filtering the carbon.

To put it another way, if your messing about making PCB's then generating acid is nothing. When I want pcb Id use one of the online shops like JLC to make it

 

[123hotchef]

You need to play with it but I’ve a 20l container and tend to 3/4 fill that with water and fire in a decent glug of acid. That tends to take about 24 hours to de scale and de dross a 1/2” plate. If it fizzes when it goes in then that seems to be a good sign.

I then take it out and run it under the tap. I’ve another container I put the metal in and cover it with water. Tip in some bicarbonate (cheap as hell from cash and carry) till litmus strips show ph neutral.

Not very scientific but it works. You could probably get away with just rinsing it.

The acid particularly likes to eat the steel around the HAZ if it’s been flame / plasma cut so keep an eye on that

I have a fair few parts I get made up and getting the mill scale off can be a ball ache. Thus sounds like a good idea to me. I may have to try it on the batch I have here to paint.

 

[123hotchef]

I have a fair few parts I get made up and getting the mill scale off can be a ball ache. Thus sounds like a good idea to me. I may have to try it on the batch I have here to paint.

Does it flash rust after though.

 

[James1979]

Does it flash rust after though.

Kind of.

Not as bad as some steels I’ve seen un treated, but yeah it does / can do.

Quick hit with a knotted cup brush in the grinder soon takes it off.

Still less grief than doing it all with a grinder

 

[Kram]

I have a fair few parts I get made up and getting the mill scale off can be a ball ache. Thus sounds like a good idea to me. I may have to try it on the batch I have here to paint.

Have you tried citric? If HCl is taking 24h, its quite dilute and may aswell be citric. It will not cause flash or even slow rust, my welding bench has been outside for nearly 2 years unpainted. Wont harm other items nearby and importantly, is more compatable with most plastic containers - big containers are hard to find in the right shape.