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Specialty Chemistry Forums => Other Sciences Question Forum => Topic started by: quentin on February 06, 2017, 11:43:31 AM

Title: Is it safe to store ammonium hydroxide waste with solvents?
Post by: quentin on February 06, 2017, 11:43:31 AM

Hi,
I'm not a chemist but with my experiments I generate ammonium hydroxide wastes (pH about 11). At the moment in my lab there is only one waste bottle, which usually is used for solvents. A colleague told me that it was OK to put my ammonium hydroxide waste in it.
Since my knowledge in chemistry is limited, I just would have liked to double check whether it was completely safe to do so?
Thanks a lot,
Quentin

Title: Re: Is it safe to store ammonium hydroxide waste with solvents?
Post by: Hunter2 on February 06, 2017, 12:37:37 PM

Ammoniumhydroxide is aqueous solution. Which solvents do you have, Aceton or glycole should be no problem, But I would avoid non aqueous solvents like ether, halogencarbons, Esters, etc.

Title: Re: Is it safe to store ammonium hydroxide waste with solvents?
Post by: Borek on February 07, 2017, 02:38:22 AM

Quote from: quentin on February 06, 2017, 11:43:31 AM

check whether it was completely safe to do so?

Mixing things you have no idea about? In general - no, that's never safe.

Title: Re: Is it safe to store ammonium hydroxide waste with solvents?
Post by: quentin on February 08, 2017, 10:09:02 AM

Thanks Hunter. To be more specific, here is the content of the waste bottle: acetone, acrylic ester, isopropanol, ethanol, ethyl acetate

What do you think would be the problem with esters?

Borek, I agree with you and that is actually the reason why I am double checking here (even if my colleague was quite confident about what he said)