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ted_yosem
Sound technical content, curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Pine Beach, NJ
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How to make sulfuric acid



Q. I heard that you can make hydrochloric acid out by mixing sulfuric acid and sodium chloride. So instead of asking how to make muriatic acid I was wondering how to make sulfuric acid. I really need to know because I'm trying to do a school project and really need to get a hold of some.

Joshua B [surname deleted for privacy by Editor]
student - Rincon, Georgia
2006


"Sulfuric acid Handbook" by Thomas Joseph Sullivan (from 1918)
sulfuric_acid1918
on eBay or

Amazon

(affil links)

A. You don't [have to] make either sulfuric acid this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] or hydrochloric acid this on Amazon [affil link] for use in your project, Joshua, you [can] buy them. If you are doing a school project, the acid should be obtained from the chemistry department because you should not be doing school science projects involving hazardous materials except when the school is taking responsibility for training, stewardship, and proper disposal. Good luck with the project!

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey


A. I do not know how to make sulfuric acid, but I do know how to make hydrochloric acid. You first do some electrolysis of brine to capture the hydrogen and chlorine gas given off. Then you combust the gases together to form hydrogen chloride, which you bubble through water. The resulting liquid is hydrochloric acid. Hope this helps you!

P.S. - What do you really want to use it for? AP?

Connor O'Neil
- Bakersfield, California
2007


"Sulfuric acid Manufacture"
by King, Moats,
& Davenport

sulfuric_acid_mfg_2013
on AbeBooks

or eBay or

Amazon

(affil links)

A. A solid mixture of Sodium chloride and sodium bisulphate ⇦[this on eBay or Amazon affil links] in a test tube will produce HCl gas when heated. Water readily absorbs hydrogen chloride gas, so by running this gas in the proximity of water, hydrochloric acid is produced.

NaCl + NaHSO4 -> HCl + Na2SO4

Greg Martin
- Grand Ledge, Michigan
January 14, 2008


A. Mixing chlorine and hydrogen gas to get hydrochloric acid could be a dangerous reaction, it would be better to mix sodium bisulphate ⇦[this on eBay or Amazon affil links] and sodium chloride and heating to get sulfuric acid, than to make hydrochloric acid add salt to it and distill the gas directly into water.

James Thompson
- San Diego, California
August 1, 2009


A. I think you can make sulfuric acid by burning sulfur this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] to produce sulfur dioxide, then bubbling the sulfur dioxide through water ... it worked for me :D

Alex C [surname deleted for privacy by Editor]
- London, England, U.K.
October 31, 2009


"Sulfuric Acid Use and Handling"
by Oscar T. Fasullo
sulfuric_acid_usehandling1965
on AbeBooks

or eBay or

Amazon

(affil links)

A. Hello, the way to make sulfuric acid is to burn sulfur ...
... but that only makes SO2.
Next you must pass the SO2 exhaust over CaCl to dry the gas
Then you must pass the SO2 and some O2 from the air over a tube filled with coarse rust heated to red hot
Then you must bubble the then SO3 through weak sulfuric acid or water to dissolve the SO3 created
Then you must filter the gas coming out of the sulfuric with carbon filters or lime filters or you might be venting SO3 to the atmosphere and it can be deadly or at least a EPA violation

Johnny lester
manufacturer - menomonee falls, Wisconsin
November 23, 2009


A. if you want to make sulfuric acid,

first make a solution of copper sulphate this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] .
then put it in a test tube.
take a carbon rod and attach a wire to it.
take a piece of copper wire and attach a wire to it.
then submerge both the copper wire and carbon rod in the solution in the test tube.
hook the carbon rod wire to the negative terminal of a 9v battery.
hook the copper wire's wire to the positive terminal of the battery.
take care that they both don't touch each other.
due to electrolysis the copper sulphate solution will separate into copper and a dilute solution of sulfuric acid

karthik jain
- new delhi, delhi, India




Q. We want to make diluted sulfuric acid 50%. How do we make it in bulk quantity?

Abdul Sami Memon
Employee - Matyari, Sindh, Pakistan
November 19, 2010


A. Hi, Matyari.

You will see the theory of how to make sulfuric acid in the reports of lab projects above. But I think building a sulfuric acid manufacturing plant is beyond what you can learn how to do from a response in an internet public forum. Sorry.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey


A. That statement that you can't find the answer to mass produce anything or specifically sulfuric Acid is simply not true. Maybe in this forum there isn't an accurate answer but if you keep searching and follow all promising links you will find the answer. I find the D-I-Y network to be a valuable source of any and all kinds of solutions to difficult procedures such as Making sulfuric Acid.

Michael Anderson
- Eugene Oregon USA
February 1, 2011


i. Thanks, Michael. 3 procedures were offered for making sulfuric acid above; but I still believe you won't find plans on the internet for building a manufacturing plant to produce 50% sulfuric acid in bulk ... but if you have a specific link, please offer it. Thanks again.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey


A. Too easy, mix 5 small spoons of sodium hydrogen sulphate (sodium bisulphate) and table salt in a test tube, cap it with a rubber stopper and right angle pipe assembly
Heat this mixture over the Bunsen burner for about 20 minutes with the right angle pipe in about 5 inches of water when this is done you will have about 5 inches of about level 8 hydrogen chloride

Josh Velt
- Langley, British Columbia, Canada
November 5, 2011

Ed. note: Josh may be right that this is "too easy" for experienced chemists; but please don't misread this to think that there are no serious hazards if the inexperienced start mixing/making hazardous chemicals :-(
And note that these are instructions for making HCl not H2SO4.

A. Read Jules Verne's "The Mysterious Island" this on AbeBooks or eBay, or Amazon [affil links], Chapter 2 or 3 (I think) gives you instructions. Also an alternate method discussed there.

Patrick Maxwell
- Midland, Michigan, USA
April 16, 2012




Q. Can I dilute 0.5m sulfuric Acid and make 0.25m sulfuric Acid?
If I can what do I need to do?

Martyn Apps
- Kent UK
May 10, 2012


A. Hi, Martyn. I'm not a chemist, but it seems to me that if a liter of solution has 1/2 mole of sulfuric acid in it, and you add that liter to a liter of de-ionized water, you will have two liters of .25m solution. Add the acid to the de-ionized water slowly, and allow to cool if it starts getting hot.

"Do as you oughta, add acid to water" -- spoken with a Kennedy accent.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey


A. If you add sulfuric acid to water you will get a big reaction and a lot of heat. So be very careful.

Ronny Oliver
retired - Lewisville, Texas, U.S.A.
June 12, 2012




Q. I need experimental data to produce sulfuric acid.

S Amini
- Iran
November 12, 2012


A. Hi Amini.

That's fairly vague. Are you able to cast your question in terms of the responses that have already been posted?

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey




Q. Can't you make sulfuric acid by mixing water, and sulfur?

R. Kimberly
- Port St. Lucie, Florida, U.S.A.
August 29, 2013


A. Hi R. Sorry, no.
Actually, you won't even be able to mix them -- sulfur is insoluble in water :-)

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey




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