White Phosphorus Safety: Storing in Paraffin vs Water

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the safety and effectiveness of storing white phosphorus under paraffin compared to water. Participants explore various factors that may influence the storage method, including environmental conditions and material properties.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express concern that storing white phosphorus under paraffin may not be safe, suggesting it could be a poor long-term solution and recommending better designs, such as using a fume hood.
  • There are claims that the behavior of paraffin is influenced by humidity, with one participant stating that paraffin deteriorates when exposed to extremely dry conditions.
  • Questions arise regarding the reliability of the information about paraffin's behavior under different humidity levels, with requests for references to support these claims.
  • One participant shares an anecdote about a negative experience with paraffin in a vacuum environment, suggesting that conditions like vacuum and steam may lead to different outcomes.
  • Another participant questions the comparison between vacuum and steam, proposing a need to compare dry air with wet air instead, and clarifies a potential misunderstanding regarding the type of paraffin being discussed.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not appear to reach a consensus on the safety and effectiveness of using paraffin for storing white phosphorus, with multiple competing views and uncertainties expressed regarding the material's behavior under different environmental conditions.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights limitations in understanding the effects of humidity and ambient pressure on paraffin, as well as the need for reliable references to support claims made about its properties.

VISHALLENI
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What will happen if white phosphorus is stored under paraffin in an airtight container and not in water?
 
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Other factors play an important role in how well this system works: Ambient pressure and most importantly humidity. Paraffin starts misbehaving a couple of hours after being exposed to an extremely dry atmosphere and its surface starts to deteriorate. Small dust particle of the surface between the paraffin and the container will accelerate peeling off the surface, and finally, the temperature under which this system is kept need to be constant.
If I were to offer an opinion, this is a very bad idea, maybe use it as a "very" short temporary solution, but definitely need a better design (and a fume hood).
 
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Really? Paraffin behavior depends on the humidity? That's the first I hear about it.
 
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Borek said:
Really? Paraffin behavior depends on the humidity? That's the first I hear about it.

uh huh, Doing some searching, I couldn't find any relevant info

copper-head said:
Other factors play an important role in how well this system works: Ambient pressure and most importantly humidity. Paraffin starts misbehaving a couple of hours after being exposed to an extremely dry atmosphere and its surface starts to deteriorate.

do you have some reliable reference for that please ? :smile:

Dave
 
copper-head said:
Other factors play an important role in how well this system works: Ambient pressure and most importantly humidity. Paraffin starts misbehaving a couple of hours after being exposed to an extremely dry atmosphere and its surface starts to deteriorate. Small dust particle of the surface between the paraffin and the container will accelerate peeling off the surface, and finally, the temperature under which this system is kept need to be constant.
If I were to offer an opinion, this is a very bad idea, maybe use it as a "very" short temporary solution, but definitely need a better design (and a fume hood).
Thanks...
 
Borek said:
Really? Paraffin behavior depends on the humidity? That's the first I hear about it.
Tried and true. Wrap it around a beaker and place it in a vacuum over for an hour = disaster. On the other hand, do the same next to a steam source and slippage and peeling starts to occur.
 
Interesting. But I am not convinced vacuum and steam are comparable - what about comparing normal, but dry air, with a wet air?

Plus, I thought OP meant liquid paraffin.
 
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