Help with sodium nitrite purification

Topic created by Moonshine
on Fri, 17 Nov 2023 at 08:16

Moonshine said on Fri, 17 Nov 2023 at 08:16...

The only sodium nitrite I've been able to source currently is food grade and likely oxidized due to storage conditions.
Does anyone know effective methods for purifying the sodium nitrite. I imagine recrystallization would be an effective route, but I'm not sure which solvents would be ideal. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

David said on Fri, 17 Nov 2023 at 17:01...

If the nitrite oxidized it became NaNO3. Nitrate. It can be reversed, but I wouldn’t recommend it. It involves adding charcoal powder and melting the powder (520F/270C) until the charcoal reacts with NaNO3 to form NaNO2 and CO2 and may form CO, carbon monoxide. Commercially they use lead to oxidize it to lead oxide. In home conditions you will unlikely be able to significantly improve the original material.

I tried it, ended up with grey mass. The residual charcoal covered the beaker in black mass.

Sodium nitrite can be stored for up to 3 years so your nitrite may still be good or at least usable.

anonymous said on Sat, 18 Nov 2023 at 08:00...

you can separate them by melting temp and skimming if you are willing to throw some nitrite away.

anonymouse said on Sat, 18 Nov 2023 at 08:02...

I did this and got better sodium nitrite but you have to start with a lot of nitrate in it.

Nitritespecialist said on Sun, 19 Nov 2023 at 16:01...

The alcohols are far more likely to cause problems. They must be highly purified lest you end up with toxic impurities and off odors....you must distill if you are using old alcohols.

Use reagent grade SN with no anti clumping agents and you'll be fine.

I've been getting very good IPN using my old reagent grade SN, fresh 70% rubbing alcohol, Menards muriatic acid(old).

25 mls 70% Equate rubbing alcohol
20 mls Muriatic
10 mls SN(measured in cup)

NO extra water.

Chill and rapidly drip the cold acid on high stir and in ice bath. Wash with cold water very well and then brine....NO soda as it causes rapid decomposition later. Dry with anhydrous potassium carbonate and then store on fresh Kcarb.

Excellent odor and effects.

anonyrat said on Mon, 20 Nov 2023 at 14:33...

SN = Sulfur Nitride?

anonymous said on Tue, 21 Nov 2023 at 15:59...

I am unsure that it would ever be possible to clean up bad sodium nitrate. I have a strong suspicion that it would be easier to make potassium nitrite out of potassium nitrate rather than try to fix bad sodium nitrite.