Metal finishing Q&As since 1989

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Huntington Alloy IAI-21, How do we make pickling solution?

Hello,

Our company wants to do its own passivating and pickling of material. We downloaded an engineering spec at mmptdpublic.jsc.nasa.gov/prc/PRC5002c.doc and it states that the solution formula can be found in the Huntington Alloy IAI-21 publication. Does anyone here know how or where I can obtion a copy? I have already contacted Inco, which seems to the parent company and I am waiting for a response from them.

Below is an excerpt from the document, if that helps:

6.2 PICKLING SOLUTION

For pickling operations, the acidic solution shall be controlled such that copper flash will not occur. General guidelines on the prevention and removal of copper flash are provided on p. 36 in Huntington Alloy IAI-21 (Second Edition, 1987). The acidity levels shall be periodically monitored to ensure that the bath is at the proper initial strength. Fresh solution should be made up when salts begin to crystallize on the sides of the tank. Also, analysis of the pickling solution shall be done periodically to verify that the metallic content is below 150 grams per liter (g/L). The solution must be discarded if the 150 g/L level is exceeded.

Thank you in advance for your help!

Monica Lang
- Hamilton, Ohio, USA
2003

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2003

The formula is as follows:

30 mL HCl
11 g FeCl3
1000 mL water
Use at ambient temperature

Inco decided several years ago to concentrate on mining nickel, and a new company, Special Metals, was formed to do the metallurgical and product development, manufacturing, processing, sales, etc. You can obtain the same Fabricating document from Special Metals by using this link: www.specialmetals.com/publication/tech_bulletin_fabricating.pdf

Toby Padfield
- Troy, Michigan