How to make a Desiccator Bag for Drying Chemicals

[TheCrazyFinn]

Would it be possible to utilize this, while conducting a synthesis, using HNO3, which produces a byproduct of H2O?

[burnzzzification]

so using this to dry my weed

[TheChemicalGenius]

@NurdRage Do you know of a dessicant that won't react with HCl gas?

[ArborChem]

@TheChemicalGenius Anhydrous calcium chloride, CaCl2

[TheChemicalGenius]

@ArborChem Thanks. So would this help me concentrate HCl acid?

[tomytherose]

i wanna dry 200 ml of hydrogen peroxid 3 % so will i get after a few days 20 ml of 30 % hydrogen peroxid?

[Ztuibyman]

Hey, I have a question: could I use vacuuming method instead of a deccicator bag because I think, if a liquid is in extreme vacuum, it would be forced to evaporate, leaving the crystals behind?

[andreh4eva]

@Ztuibyman yes and it is even better, this probably just for people who do not have a decent vacuum pump.

[flamingchucknorris]

im trying to make rust oxide by connecting an iron rod to a positive terminal and putting it in water with the negative terminal in the water. I am making this for later production of thermite, but its taking FOREVER to dry, and when i tried cooking it, i barely got any rust oxide. I think its hygroscopic, but i dont want to waste time making a desiccator bag i dont need.

[Magicjeffff]

... and if it starts eating through it's contaier, it DEEEEEFINAELY needs to be replaced. lmao

[gehtomacgyver]

I bought lab grade sodium hydroxide ,but for some reason it is mushy ... what can I do to fix this and make it solid again ?

[ScienceTry]

@gehtomacgyver To make it solid is really difficult.... but if you want you can heat the

hydroxide until it dries.

[caboseisstupid]

I'm just wondering why the height of the desiccant container needs to be similar to the height of the container of the item you want to dry, I would think a low, large dish would be best for absorption, isn't the humidity roughly the same if the levels of chemicals in the containers is the same? The only rationale that comes to mind is using similar heights to avoid trying to dry out the air in the bag to conserve desiccant. Thanks!

[rzezagar]

Does some everyday use items can be dessicated this way? I'd like to dry insides of my shoes properly. Would this method do the job?

[OOZ662]

@rzezagar I don't see why not. It's just the transfer of moisture from one substance to another. It's like placing ice in water with something to transfer the cold from the ice to the object, except you're moving moisture through air instead.

[athaulfthegoth]

Thanks for the great idea! we made a desiccator out of a RubberMaid plastic container with a top. We used a tuna fish tin can with sodium hydroxide (lye from the hardware store---it doesn't have to be very pure). Used it to dry silver nitrate + HNO3 like in your other video. Extra advantage, no dust gets in while you're drying. Anna (age 7) and her dad (too old).

[JakeXVX]

Hi NurdRage, would this setup expedite the process of crystallizing CuSO4? I am having a hard time forming large crystals. Thanks!

[kitty6837]

@JakeXVX Try re-crystallization.

[koolness73]

and where cna we find silica gel or calcium chloride or sodium hydroxide?

[Palizasadomicilio]

Hi there, do you think that it can dehydrate solids that form an hydrate that can't be dried by simple heating? I mean, for example lithium iodide? Thanks in advance!

[paopaomanalansan]

Can this procedure replace distillation method?

[viki223311]

Do you have a video of making sodium acetate?

[EthanThomas33]

Can I use calcium hydroxide for the drying agent?

Thanks

[megamarko94]

Can I use CaCl2 as desiccant

[jbohbot1]

@megamarko94 i tried it and it works.

[Someonationification]

can you use potassium hydroxide?

[jbohbot1]

@Someonationification yes.

[alfonso8564]

i read I can use Mg too,is that right?

[lolimnoteighteen]

where do you get sodium hydroxide???

[g3ov4n12]

Ethylene glycol can be used as dessicant too!

[98JMA]

Would anhydrous CuSO4 be suffice as a drying agent??

[eXplosivegames]

ammonium nitrate is so much higroscopic... i will try whit this

[mastercheif291]

Can you use this desiccator to dry out sodium acetate trihydrate made using the home method faster than leaving it out and uncovered??

[redleader55yt]

are there reasons for using this method over something like a freeze dryer? other than cost.

[9DragonMaster]

could i use kitty litter?

[viclorwow]

could i use this for Copper (II) chloride?

[1ukjunglednbraver]

nurdrage i cant buy pure dry ethle alcohol in the uk but i can distill it myself upto about 95%..could i dry it by adding dry magnesium sulfate salts and then remove the crystels after...i have seen this done to dry other solvents like petrolium ether i was just wondering if it would work with ethel alcohol...sorry about my speling i know its poor.

[freakin1random]

can you heat the beads to dry them like you can with NaOH

[antiswattt3]

first found out your name is written in the start >_> rofl you really named lithium o.O

[Oz6102]

You made this on my Birthday!

[pyrogirl1985]

Ive made this bag and my bag begins to decompose, just like the way your soft drink decomposes. I am using sodium hydroxide I have also used silica gels and the same effect occurs what have I done wrong?

[NurdRage]

bag might be made of an ester-based polymer which is susceptible to hydroxide. i reccomend putting the sodium hydroxide in a tin can or finding a bag from a different brand. Not all bags are susceptible to hydroxide.

[pyrogirl1985]

@NurdRage

Thank You but, I have tried various bags and the same process occurs. I have even tried your bag and yet the same thing happens.

P.S. The tin can does work beautifully much thanks

[fedaikn]

@NurdRage the sodium hydroxide cannot be regenerated, i thought about copper sulphate as desiccating agent because theoretically the blue copper sulphate pentahydrate can be dried in a oven until it is white anhydrous copper sulphate.

would it be a good idea to use the sulphate alongside the sodium hydroxide, of course in separate containers?

[antiswattt3]

hey nurdrage.. i was thinking about H2SO4 and sodium hydroxide in a desiccator bag.. (: you think that would work? and why not just use a glass container as hydroxides only etch when theyre boiling hot.. (:

also ive heard when you heat CuSO4 at high temperatures to make CuO theres also formed SO3.. maybe useful for making H2SO4 ? the only problem about that is just to make the tubes leading into water not melt..

[wouter1988]

@NurdRage Try to find PE, PP or other cheap, inert polymer containers. Tupperware -like containers should be very compatible, as they usally are made out of PP.

[fedaikn]

@pyrogirl1985 instead of using a bag, look for a adequately sized jar with a lid that can seal it well. put the sodium hydroxide at the bottom and make a kind of tripod with plastic (cd, cd case, ruler, use whatever comes to hand) to keep your target substance and it's container above the sodium hydroxide.

[Najezony]

Will it work with the sillica gel which is added to shoes, clothes and food, or it'll need be activated by vacuum and heating ?

[naturvetaren92]

I have a dissolved salt I want in solid form. Will this method be quicker than simply evaporating the water?

[misko112100]

will it go faster if i use like 3-4 containers of sodium hydroxide on 1 container of my chemical?

[skittlesmonkey]

it will go faster if u use more but u can just use 1 big container it really doesn't make a difference

[pyropakman]

Yeah, it will. It'll be faster even than one big container, because you'll have more surface area of NaOH exposed to the atmosphere of the bag.

[freakin1random]

btw, can you use a vaccume (not one for floors, i mean a lack of gas) to boil the water? or will it not remove all the water.

[skittlesmonkey]

generally, it would work. But if it is really hygroscopic, like sodium hydroxide, it wont work real well. But generally it will dry anything u put in there even fruit and stuff like that.

[blink182chase13]

ok sir how about this. using eletrlysis or whatever, send current though 2 bowls of super saturated salt water using a salt bridege. the hydrogen atoms displace and combine with the sodium. so i doubt you know this method but ill ask anyways. 1. anyway to pump up the concentration level. 2. do i evavorate off the water to get the sodium hydroxide.....lets just say i ran out of lighter fluid to burn my wood.

[blink182chase13]

Ok here's a challenge. I want to dry out lye water from the method of burning wood and running water though its ashes, so how can i evaportae off the water from the sodium hydroxide when sodium hydroxide its self is extremely hydroscopic.

[skittlesmonkey]

well i hope you used dried hardwood from a really hot fire because otherwise all u have is a bunch of carbonates,.

sodium hydroxide is very temperature resistant, you can just heat in the oven, over a fire, or in a cooking pot. the method he describes here is for temperature unstable chemicals.

[blink182chase13]

@skittlesmonkey planning on burning oak. Oak plywood for that matter. Its hard wood, but just cut finley so it would right?. So basically make it evaportate by heating it up. Doesnt it get flammable at high tempatures?

[skittlesmonkey]

no it doesn't get flammable at any temperature but it does melt at about 300 C, oak is a good choice and make sure it is a really hot fire.

[skittlesmonkey]

you can get one of those vacuum pumps they use to siphon oil out of engines for 30$ just plug up the little hose, put however much chemical in the container, and pump. you can dry 10 lb of anything in 3 min.

[NinjaWulluf]

Will it dry AN?

[skittlesmonkey]

put in the oven at 250 Fahrenheit for an hour and its good, it wont decompose unless you exceed about 400 F

[NinjaWulluf]

thanks :)

[98209276]

could you use iron oxide powder i heard it absorbs water also or iron powder

[skittlesmonkey]

no u cant its not at all hydroscopic

[NADHHH]

Hi! Can I use NaOH to dry ZnCl2 ?

How much water NaOH can absorb?

[skittlesmonkey]

yes you can just use equal amounts, but really it depends on the condition of both chemicals

[freakin1random]

lolol damn. can you boil the naoh later. would a steel container affect the process.

[skittlesmonkey]

no sodium hydroxide will not attack steel

[freakin1random]

@skittlesmonkey thanks. tried it and it helps a lot. you can boil the water out after its too wet.

[skittlesmonkey]

yea u can even leave it in the steel container

[pinkytm1]

Interesting I am trying to make MgCl2*6H2O from table salt and Epsom salt. But the crystals of Na2SO4*10H20 I get upon cooling to 0 C are a mushy nightmare, riddle with MgCl2/Na2SO4 solution. That want filter off. Anyway I was wonder what you do in that situation? I think vacuum filtering is used in labs.

[NurdRage]

@pinkytm1

I think your better bet might be to mix milk of mangesia, (which is magnesium hydroxide) with hydrochloric acid. You'll get a purer product that's easier to crystallize.

But if what you have is all that's available, then i would first try a slower method of cooling. sounds like its cool too fast and causing it to crap out like that.

[pinkytm1]

Hmm I have MgCO3 I made from Na2CO3(thermodec of NaHCO3) and Epsom salt. But I do not trust the purity of hardware store hydrochloric acid(I'm trying to make a food grade product). I am aware of a product that is used to make tofu, that is mostly MgCl2. But I like to make my original plan work some how :) My next idea is to prepare my solution of NaCl and Epsom salt and completely bake out the water. Then extract with 0 C water. Which should mostly remove MgCl2

[NurdRage]

@pinkytm1

sounds like a good idea, go for it

[furax333]

@pinkytm1

you still speaking english 0.0?

[1ukjunglednbraver]

nurdrage this may be a silly thing to ask but can u use a Desiccator to remove water from a ethanol alchol water mix in a bag..or do u no any other way to make ethanol pure like dry ethanol..sorry i was never so great at english

[NurdRage]

@1ukjunglednbraver

The desiccator bag only works on solids. Liquids require a different approach.

I'm putting together a video on that, but it won't be ready for some time.

[1ukjunglednbraver]

ok thank u

[zcuttlefish]

there is a better drying agent out there - magnesium sulfate can be bought in big bags at the pharmacy as epsom salt. It won't eat through your container, and is reusable. You just need a hot plate to remove the moisture from the mgso4. I might post a vid on this later.

[NurdRage]

@zcuttlefish

good suggestion!

It cannot be used to absorb acidic gases like NO2,SO2 and CO2. But otherwise, go for it.

[Glockffs]

what if you have two solids absorbing gases, where one was better at water, and the other isnt as good but also absorbs gases? I would think if there were two, one would approach the others efficiency. But with 9 parts MgSO4 to 1 part NaOH, .. you would have 90% of gaseous H20 absorbed by the greater part, if both had equal deliquescence. This would leave more mass of the NaOH reactive enough to pull the acidic gases from the air, and an efficiency in cost is still achieved. Thoughts?

[Glockffs]

awesome. I was thinking maybe cat litter, clumping kind, but u would need a filter for the dust. Or maybe bake it dry first to remove ambient moisture. Or what about that 5-minute cement? I bet its hygroscopic.

[skarrip]

silly question but ..

I dont know if you about pyrotechnics at all but if you do could these bags be used to dry firework stars faster ?

[NurdRage]

@skarrip

Oh the bag is very slow. much slower than other methods. But what makes it useful is that it's extremely thorough, and can dry things that can't be dried by other methods, like temperature sensitive chemicals that would be destroyed if you tried to heat them.

[skarrip]

Ahhh i see . thanks for responding

[AgentCROCODILE]

I would think that those silica gel beads have a lil' ol' cobalt chloride in them. If I had to guess it is just some sort of coating on them.

[Incredibleman007]

Would this work with ammonium nitrate instead of NaOH? and if so, would it work very well or am i better off to go buy some NaOH to do this?

[NurdRage]

@Incredibleman007

kinda, ammonium nitrate is not as hygroscopic as NaOH though, so it might not dry all things as thoroughly as you want it to.

But i suppose it can't hurt to try.

[Incredibleman007]

Thnx.

[dragonridley]

Another question on the acidic gases, say CO2.

Would the CO2 react directly with the NaOH to form sodium bicarbonate or would the CO2 first react with moisture to form carbonic acid?

[HazMatLabz]

would this work with an acid that turns into a powder at high concentrations?

[Frresh123]

@ HazMatLabz : if the acid isnt hygroscopic and if the acid doesnt decompose while the acidic liquid vaporizing, it would work, but i dont know any acid with those properties =P

[CarnalDiafragma]

Would this work for concentrating nitric acid, or other non-crystallizing fluids?

[Frresh123]

It does only work with solid substances which are solved in a liquid, it would never concentrating nitric acid cause it asorbs the water and the NO2 from the hno3.

[CarnalDiafragma]

Ok thanks :) Already was afraid that it wouldn't work.

[BasementBen]

I wonder how dried white rice would do, surely not as good as silica, or SodiumHydroxide.

Ben.

[K5HLR212]

You never said "Alright"

[CleanFreeMedia]

Just a tip, if wanting to save on chemicals; you could take the dissector in this case, silica beads or sodium hydroxide and heat them up removing the moisture from them as well. Then they are good as new and are ready to be reused.

Fyi - Not all desiccants are the same so always read upon the hazards of heating what ever desiccant you are using.

[nathanlh270]

Would this trick work with Lithium Chloride too? The usual drying procedure requires hydrogen chloride.

[skittlesmonkey]

u can just put lithum chloride on the stove or in the oven and dry it

[cardoolen]

why do you upload videos so much. I mean u have allready uploaded that video :P

[NurdRage]

@cardoolen

this is the only dessicator video i have

[silverblotter]

COME ON MAKE A NEW VID ALREADY

[NurdRage]

@silverblotter

Why the sudden flaming? did youtube make an error again and pop this video into everyone's subscriptions boxes making it look like i reuploaded it?

[silverblotter]

no, its just your vids are nice and i look forward to new vids every day please make more vids... lost more

[TheTwelfthDoctor]

it did in my inbox, but i'm just going to watch it again. =]

[TruJezter]

unfortuneately it did, personally I don't mind though. Thank You for the great vids!

[Kryptic8900]

Great video, looks really useful and very easy to make!

[killman369547]

completly unrelated but have u heard of a human conduit

[danagol1985]

Interesting and useful, Good video.

5/5*'s

[johnpaulpullicino]

in Malta we can buy sulfuric acid but i don't know where i can buy

[1ukjunglednbraver]

some tyeps of drain cleaner are up to 95% sulfuric acid

[Glockffs]

Really? I would have thought drain cleaners would all be bases.

[1ukjunglednbraver]

no some hardcore stuff is high strenth sulfric acid..its stronger than the base stuff

[Glockffs]

ya ur right.. 95% H2SO4 sold as drain cleaner in the US freely... intended for professionals but for the general public. Good idea, but how many impurities are there, if you intended to perform chemistry with it?

[1ukjunglednbraver]

dont know what the impuritys are i think there just water..im probly wrong.. u can use it for making nitric acid and stuff..its fine for that

[zalvoz]

But, if i were to crystalise a copper sulfide solution would the desiccator speed up the process ?

sorry for my english :P

[johnpaulpullicino]

where i can find Sulfuric acid ,at the hardware store i find hydroxide acid can you help me pls ???

[NurdRage]

@johnpaulpullicino

Your profile says you live in malta. I don't know the local laws there or the availability of chemicals.

[skittlesmonkey]

auto pats stores have it for car batteries some places sell it for drain cleaner

[11to]

does CuAc(2) decompose by heating?

[skittlesmonkey]

u can dry it with heat but don't exceed 140C as the salt will actually evaporate which is really strange

[blink182chase13]

@skittlesmonkey hot fire....so how about just abunch of lighter fluid and light away?

[LordNodge]

Very straightforward and useful. Thanks. Are there any drying agents that can be recycled by drying in a more conventional manner?

[PEA1222]

how to make dysprosium nitrate?

[NurdRage]

@pea1222

why do you want dysprosium nitrate?

[weldmaster80]

could the NaOH be reused, maybe use glass ciontainers and heat in oven on a low temp (maybe 200 F) than re use... asuming yor not deaing with something that makse much acidic gasses.... than once you dont need it any more I can still use it to make soap. OH, you should do a vid on soaponafication (sp?)

once again you rock!

[NurdRage]

@weldmaster80

The sodium hydroxide will eat through the glass if given enough time, the point of using plastic containers is that they are disposable.

If you want to reuse your desiccant i instead recommend going with the silica gel or one of the sulfates mentioned in the video description.

[wesdawg84]

thanks for the technique great to have someone thats willing to show tricks of their trade.

[rrp15487]

thanks! this is useful!

[kwibjo123456789]

nice

[zapo147]

Could you do this to concentrate H2O2? I never thought of this to concentrate solutions.

[NurdRage]

@Zapo147

Sorry this only works on solids, not liquids.

[Glockffs]

Desiccating H2O2 turns into nothing.. The oxygen is long gone and you'll have mostly H2O throughout most of the drying period... Just don't be smoking anything when you open the puffy bag! That cigarette will turn into a firework, with enough oxygen..

[IkeFinal]

This is really helpful

Thanks!!

[jungleman68]

thank you

[dragonridley]

You said the NaOH would absorb acidic vapors. would that be a problem if the target chemical is acidic?

[NurdRage]

@dragonridley

As long as the target chemical does not itself evaporate, then it doesn't matter. Only vapors, like water and acid will get absorbed by NaOH

[gtjohnnycake]

i could see the creators of ''Saw'' putting someone in a bag with that stuff

[Glockffs]

LOL mummification while ALIVE. Well, you'd die of thirst at an accelerated rate.. But you could practically pose yourself before you mummify.. or die trying.

[aonomus]

One problem I can see is that PET drink bottles will hydrolyze with conc. NaOH (or other strong bases). As the dry NaOH absorbs water and forms an aqueous solution, you might get to the point where the bottle is so weak it can fall apart when you move it.

I use drying agents that can be regenerated by heat such as MgSO4 or CaSO4 that won't be so aggressive to bottles such as NaOH/KOH.

[NurdRage]

@aonomus

I think you missed decomposition of the bottle in the video.

[K5HLR212]

You didn't say "Alright"

[adamalden]

Could you use a sodium sulfate? Also could you use a combination of all three?

[Qtmas]

hallo, what did the dysprosium nitrate decompose inta?

[StaticDonut]

Magic.

[antiswattt2]

dude you rock!!! :D i heard somewhere that sodium chloride (table salt) is a bit hygroscopic too? damn this is the ultimate for my ammonium nitrate^^ but as another guy asked.. can this be used to concentrate acids?

[NurdRage]

@antiswattt2

Sorry, it won't work on liquids because it will absorb the liquids themselves too. :)

[antiswattt2]

thanks for replying (: ill use this for my ammonium nitrate.. i remember how pissed off i got when i tried to dry some with heat P:

[TheAmateurChemist]

Simple yet genius!

[joewilder]

I wonder if you could dehydrate foods this way?

[NurdRage]

@joewilder

you could try, but since this takes a week or so to dry stuff i think your food would go bad long before it was dry.

[zederish]

don't be wonder baby

[Kizmox]

Can this be used to remove water from 70% nitric acid to get near 99% product?

[NurdRage]

@Kizmox

nitric acid itself also evaporates, and will react with the desiccant, so no, sorry.

[PinwheelEye]

I've subscribed, I've rated! And now heres my comment

[wowggscrub]

can KOH work as drying agent?

[NurdRage]

@wowggscrub

yes,

[Sheynan55]

thx for the video!!

[hungsolow123]

Question: seeing as the bag covers quite a bit of the top of each container, does that slow down the transfer of water? Maybe putting some posts to expand the bag and using smaller containers might speed up the transfer?

[paddletug]

yet another nice video

[dbc616]

Will this work with taking any chemical (say, iodine or sodium chloride) out of solution?

[YdeckW]

It will remove water from any solution, but leave everything else. Also, the drying agent I prefer is phosphorus(V) oxide. I believe it will do the work faster than NaOH, but NaOH is OK.

[Xeromyr]

What about vacuum sealing?

[holycrapapie]

Something I can't seem to understand is, why do you change the pitch of your voice?

[aboodmatar]

@holycrapapie

Because he can.

[holycrapapie]

@aboodmatar

Why is everyone replying like twitter?

[triFeral]

Because YouTube is too lazy to fix the reply system.

[xoANONiMUSox]

yt is becoming twitter - comment search, trending topics, this.....

it sux!!

[aboodmatar]

@holycrapapie

What xoANONiMUSox said: A twitter alien took over the bodies of youtube people and is changing youtube into twitter :(

[CrayonEater]

If you have uncolored silica gel beads can't you just switch them out every 2 days?

or is silica gel that expensive? I guess you could just steal them from shoe boxes at a shoe store.

[NurdRage]

@Crayon Eater

I suppose if you have that much silica gel then go for it :)

Good thing about silica is that you can bake them dry and reuse them.

[janeeee999]

You can get silica gel at hobby shops. They are used for drying flowers in a matter of a couple of days without degrading colour or shape.

[NurdRage]

@janeeee999

Ah interesting, :)

[janeeee999]

Try Michaels for large bags of silica gel beads. I don't think it was more than $10 for a 1lb of that stuff. I have more than 1/2 an ice cream bucket of it. Its for drying flowers. You bury the flower in silica gel. 2 days later or so its dry and it keeps the vibrant colour and shape. You can also microwave it and in 10 minutes you have dry flowers.

[Pipewing]

Thanks janeeee999! I got some and it has some type of indicator mixed with the silica gel which turns red from blue when you need to dry it out again. ("Flower Drying" cost about 10USD for 1lb 8oz ) Thanks for posting that and of course thanks nurdrage.