Letter 32055

The reaction between stainless steel and bleach  

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Hi,

I am a student and I did an experiment about the reaction between stainless steel nail and bleach, and I found that stainless steel nail rusted after putting it in bleach about 2 weeks. I would like to ask why stainless steel reacted with bleach.

Thank you!

Rachel L.
student - Hong Kong

If you used a nail, it probably was of the 400 series SS. This is basically iron and a small amount of chrome alloy. Bleach is a solution of sodium hypochlorite, which is a moderately strong oxidizer. Rust is iron oxide. Iron + oxygen + moisture = rust. There will also be a trace of chloride ions in the solution which is well known to promote rusting.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida

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