calcium reactor and hydrocloric acid.question

[gt8448a]

Eli

By having a lot of "free" chloride and sulfide ions in your tank, you run the risk of having these ions react with other balanced chemicals that are present in your tank. It's difficult to explain the chemistry part of this if you don't understand how free ions pair up with (and in many cases replace) other compounds. This is what Shane meant by upsetting the ionic balance of your tank.

Harrell

 

[liquid]

Basically what would happen is that you would be using hydrochloric acid to dissolve calcium carbonate instead of CO2 and by using hydrochloric acid to dissolve calcium carbonate, you'd be dumping in chloride ions into your water along with your calcium. These chloride ions do not evaporate over time so you'd have a net increase in your chloride ion concentration in your tank. Granted, natural saltwater contains a LOT of chloride but eventually it would build up and cause an imbalance.

If you'd like to read up on more chemistry issues, head over to http://www.reefs.org/library/aquarium_frontiers/index.html and read up on the Biochemistry of Aquaria by Craig Bingman.

hth

Shane

 

[randy holmes-farley]

<< that has a lower PH by adding hydrocloric or sulfuric acid to it.
the lower PH water will do the same to the media as would CO2.
but would the acid do any harm to the reef. >>


That would be a HUGE mistake. In fact, it would never work.

The reason that CO2 can be used is that the excess CO2 (and hence excess acid) can be blown off by the tank.

If you use a mineral acid, the pH will decline forever, 8.2...7.8...7.4...6.8...6.0...5.0..4.0..3.0..

Shortly, everything will be dead.

Think of it this way:

Corals take out calcium carbonate.

A normal reactor adds CO2 and calcium carbonate, and the tank blows off the CO2.

Your reactor will add calcium carbonate and HCl (or H2SO4).

So in the end, you add acid every day, and it has nowhere to go.

[ February 13, 2002: Message edited by: Randy Holmes-Farley ]</p>

 

[Anonymous]

hi.
You can always make this "work" longer by adding lye (NaOH) to it to contract the excess protons. But eventually, those Na and Cl will get you unless you do water changes often enough...

 

[eli1]

is it possible to have the calcium reactor runnimg without CO2tank instead run a line from top off water that has a lower PH by adding hydrocloric or sulfuric acid to it.
the lower PH water will do the same to the media as would CO2.
but would the acid do any harm to the reef.

 

[liquid]

While technically it would work, you'd be dumping in a LOT of chloride or sulfide ions into the water column which would eventually upset your ionic balance. CO2 has the nice benefit that it doesn't cause an ionic disruption to your tank water.

Shane

 

[eli1]

ionic balance wat would that do how would it upset my tank.

 

[randy holmes-farley]

Yes, you can. I don't know why someone would want to perform such a complicated process and end up adding nothing more than calcium chloride and sodium bicarbonate, but it is certainly doable.