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Stripping of EN with Nitric plus acetic acid mix

Sir
I am from India. I am working in a plating plant. Here we are using a lot of nitric acid for tank passivation. As a new idea our engineer proposed a new acid mixture of nitric acid and acetic acid ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] for stripping HPEN from CS base metal. But I found that these two acids are very much incompatible by searching through web sites. But I am not able to find actually what will happened if we mix Nitric acid with acetic acid . If I know that I can convince our boss not to use this acid mixture.
So please help me by giving the actual reactions with Nitric acid and acetic acid .
Expecting an early reply

Thanking you

ANVER SULAIMAN
plating shop employee - Mysore, Karnataka, India
January 18, 2010

Nitric acid destroys organics by oxidizing the carbon atoms in their molecules. This reaction liberates heat, so it can be violent. acetic acid is an organic substance, so it will be destroyed.

Guillermo Marrufo
Monterrey, NL, Mexico
January 30, 2010

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But we are using that acid mixture( 70% Nitric Acid and Glacial acetic acid ) for last one year. But nothing has happened!. But the available information's are not recommending that, but nothing has happened till now. Why?
Anybody can explain

ANVER SULAIMAN
- Mysore, Karnataka, India
February 6, 2010

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February 8, 2010

Nitric acid is a strange material in that it is an oxidizing agent in the higher concentrations but will strip metals in lower concentrations.
I suspect that someone made an addition of concentrated nitric and did not mix it well during the add and thus it destroyed some or all of the acetic acid . What type of acid concentration analyses are you doing.
It is also possible that you have exceeded the metal load and it has slowed down to the point of not stripping.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida