Drain cleaners alkaline-based

Strong acids, bases, or oxidizers can cause permanent eye damage, skin bums, and, if swallowed, gastrointestinal damage. Examples of corrosive products include alkaline drain cleaners and oven cleaners, acid-based toilet bowl cleaners and rust removers, concentrated disinfectants, and some concentrated pesticides, especially fungicides. 

Examples of bases, (a) Reactions involving sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO, make baked goods rise, (b) Ashes contain potassium carbonate, K2C03. (c) Soap is made by reacting bases with animal or vegetable oils. The soap itself, then, is slightly alkaline, (d) Powerful bases, such as sodium hydroxide, NaOH, are used in drain cleaners. 

The next step is to add a base to our solution. One often used in extraction formulas is ammonium hydroxide, a liquid. If this is unobtainable you can substitute regular household lye crystals (sold as drain cleaner) dissolved in water to a high concentration. (Lye is a dangerous chemical. Read and follow all of the instructions on the can.) This fluid is added in small increments to the aqueous solution, shaking the mixture each time, then testing it until eventually the pH reaches 9 or 10. Be patient. It usually takes many careful applications before the pH is where you want it. If you re in too much of a hurry, it is easy to make the solution far more alkaline than necessary. 

Early chemists called any compound that tasted sour an acid (from acidus, Latin for sour ). Some familiar acids are citric acid (found in lemons and other citms fmits), acetic acid (found in vinegar), and hydrochloric acid (found in stomach acid— the sour taste associated with vomiting). Compounds that neutralize acids, such as wood ashes and other plant ashes, were called bases, or alkaline compounds ( ash in Arabic is al kalai). Glass cleaners and solutions designed to unclog drains are alkaline solutions. 

First this discussion will tnm to the simplest of the specialty cleaners, those based on very high pH the oven and drain cleaners. Both are usually based on a high concentration of an alkaline ingredient such as sodium hydroxide. In both cases, the alkalinity of the formula is key to its ability to clean the soils encountered in these problems. The choice of snrfactant is somewhat limited, as the surfactant needs to be stable at pHs of 11-14, bnt there is still reasonable choice. The main function of the surfactant in these products relates primarily to their foaming. 

There are some examples in the patent literature of acid drain cleaners, but these are either industrial applications or based on high concentrations of sulfuric acid. There seems to be a consensus that the acid versions are too dangerous for consumers to handle, and the commercial formulas are alkaline. Some examples of ingredients and their relative concentrations for drain cleaners are outlined in Table 5.1. 

Compounds that neutralize acids, thereby destroying their acidic properties, were called bases, or alkaline compounds. Glass cleaners and solutions designed to unclog drains are familiar alkaline solutions. 

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