People helping each other -- No AI, no cost, no reg'n, no damn popups
(As an Amazon Associate & eBay Partner we earn from qualifying purchases)

Home /
T.O.C.
Fun
FAQs
Good
Books
Ref.
Libr.
Adver-
tise
Help
Wanted
Current
Q&A's
Site 🔍
Search
finishing.com -- The Home Page of the Finishing Industry


  Thread 369/47

The efficacy of electropolish through a waste treatment system


I have a waste treatment system that deals with five waste streams. Chrome, Nickel, cyanide,cleaners, acid/alkaline. I presently use sulfuric acid to adjust ph in the chrome, cyanide stage #2, and final effluent. I'd like to use an electropolish waste, which is sulfuric and phosphoric acid, to adjust ph in my chrome and cyanide stage #2. All five waste streams run to a reaction #1 tank which is adjusted for ph and a coagulant is added. It flows to a reaction #2 tank where sulfide is added and the ph is raised to 10.2. It flows into a concentration tank which feeds my microfilter. How will the addition of the phosphoric affect my cyanide reaction? How will it affect my membranes ? What type of byproduct will there be?

Robert Albrecht
electroplating shop - Lawrence, Massachusetts
publicly reply to Robert Albrecht


2005

Since you have all the solutions you want to test, this is a perfect time for a bench test. Your laboratory (the laboratory you have in your plant) should be set up with all the necessaries to run tests on 2 liter solutions of waste. So you need a dozen 2 liter beaker [beakers on eBay or Amazon [affil links] s, and pipette [pipettes on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , pipette bulbs, stirring rods, pH and ORP meters.

If you must, you can send samples to an outside laboratory to do the work, but pick a laboratory that is not selling chemical addition agents for waste treatment. You may be able to get a retired chemist to come into your lab to get this work done, if you know of any, or you can get a name from a university nearby.

tom pullizzi animated    tomPullizziSignature
Tom Pullizzi
Falls Township, Pennsylvania
publicly reply to Tom Pullizzi


2005

I'm a little worried that nickel from your electropolishing solution will react with any remaining cyanide to form a very difficult to treat, nickel cyanide complex.

This is a case where jar testing and dynamic testing may yield different results.

Lyle Kirman
consultant - Cleveland Heights, Ohio
publicly reply to Lyle Kirman



(No "dead threads" here! If this page isn't currently on the Hotline your Q, A, or Comment will restore it)

Q, A, or Comment on THIS thread -or- Start a NEW Thread


Disclaimer: It's not possible to fully diagnose a finishing problem or the hazards of an operation via these pages. All information presented is for general reference and does not represent a professional opinion nor the policy of an author's employer. The internet is largely anonymous & unvetted; some names may be fictitious and some recommendations might be harmful.

If you are seeking a product or service related to metal finishing, please check these Directories:

Finishing
Jobshops
Capital
Equipment
Chemicals &
Consumables
Consult'g,
& Software


About/Contact  -  Privacy Policy  -  ©1995-2025 finishing.com, Pine Beach, New Jersey, USA  -  about "affil links"