[SEL] O.T O.T. O.T. - any chemist on the List?

[Jim Hardman]

Paul, the real question about any residual solvent is whether or not it was 
repackaged.  Commercial solvents, after use and contamination, are normally 
shipped to disposal centers where they are incinerated.  The costs are high 
and sometimes, drums "get lost" and are found elsewhere a long time later.

If your drums or containers contained straight acetone which was emptied out 
in the manufacture of nail polish or lacquer thinner, your drums are 
uncontaminated and a water wash will carry any residual acetone away.  If, 
after a water wash, there is still "stuff" in the drums, you have drums 
which held recycled solvent and who knows what might be in there.

Try the water wash.  If the drums come out clean, your job is done and the 
drums will be fine for collecting rain water.  Acetone is so volatile that 
any trace amounts will evaporate with initail drying.  Peter's comments 
below are correct.

Jim

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Peter Scales" <peter at loud-n-clear.net>
To: "'The SEL email discussion list'" <sel at lists.stationary-engine.com>
Sent: Monday, March 02, 2009 2:25 AM
Subject: Re: [SEL] O.T O.T. O.T. - any chemist on the List?


> If acetone was all they contained, then a wash with water and a blow-dry
> with air will do it.  Acetone is very volatile (and inflammable!) so best 
> to
> do it out-of-doors and not to use a hair-dryer :-)  As far as I know,
> acetone hasn't got any particularly unpleasant characteristics (it's a 
> major
> component of nail varnish remover) so leaving a small amount in the barrel
> should only result in a strong smell.
>
> All the best
>
>     Pete
> -- 
> Peter Scales
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: sel-bounces at lists.stationary-engine.com
>> [mailto:sel-bounces at lists.stationary-engine.com] On Behalf Of
>> paulmaples at sbcglobal.net
>> Sent: 02 March 2009 01:21
>> To: sel at lists.stationary-engine.com
>> Subject: [SEL] O.T O.T. O.T. - any chemist on the List?
>>
>> Looking for someone that knows how to sanitize some old
>> plastic barrels that once contained acetone.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Paul
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>> SEL at lists.stationary-engine.com
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>>
>
>
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