Corrosive liquid, basic, organic

Specialized equipment can minimize exposure to the hazards of laboratory operations. Impact resistant safety glasses are basic equipment and should be worn at all times. They may be supplemented by face shields or goggles for particular operations, such as pouring corrosive liquids. Because skin contact with chemicals can lead to skin irritation or sensitization or, through absorption, to effects on internal organs, protective gloves are often needed. 

Note that ethylbenzene is a derivative of two basic organic chemicals, ethylene and benzene. A vapor-phase method with boron trifluoride, phosphoric acid, or alumina-silica as catalysts has given away to a liquid-phase reaction with aluminum chloride at 90°C and atmospheric pressure. A new Mobil-Badger zeolite catalyst at 420°C and 175-300 psi in the gas phase may be the method of choice for future plants to avoid corrosion problems. The mechanism of the reaction involves complexation of the... 

The Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) of the US Department of Transportation (DOT) published a list of the top 50 hazardous materials in a 1998-1999 summary of HAZMAT transportation incidents (24). The corrosive materials that were most involved in HAZMAT incidents in 1998 were sodium hydroxide solutions, basic inorganic liquids, hydrochloric acid, solutions, sulfuric acid, cleaning liquids, hypochlorite solutions, basic organic liquids, liquid amines, and ammonia solutions. 

Nevertheless, there are many instances where electrochemical corrosion mechanisms may play a primary role in affecting the service performance of bonded joints. It should be noted that such mechanisms of attack involve both the presence of (a) anodic sites, where reaction with the metallic substrate occurs and electrons are generated, and (b) cathodic sites, where the electrons are consumed. The major reaction leads to the generation of hydroxyl ions, and the liquid present at these sites will become strongly basic and so possess a relatively high pH. Thus, typically an aqueous (electrolyte) layer needs to be present, since, without such an aqueous film, no electrical current can flow from the anodic to the cathodic sites. These aspects are illustrated, for example, by the schematic electrochemical corrosion mechanism for an organic coating on a steel substrate shown in Fig. 4, which is discussed in detail in Section 2.S.2.2. 

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