Re: Rocks

[Mike & Diane Wise <apistowise@fgn.net>]

I'll add to what others have said. Having been a
minerals exploration geologist for 10 years, I
think I can add some caution to what has been
said. Vinegar is a weak acid. On some carbonate
bearing rock like dolomite it will not react
without scraping part of the rock into powder.
Dave uses sulfuric acid which is much stronger &
will react without any extra scraping. Geologists
use hydrochloric acid for this purpose. Muriatic
acid can be found at hardware stores. This is an
industrial grade of hydrochloric acid.

Even non-calcareous rocks can be dangerous. Many
have heavy metals that can leach out and be toxic
to fish. Most volcanic rocks are OK, but rock with
blue, green, & yellow colored minerals should to
be used with great caution. Those that show
metallic grains need to be avoided, too. My
philosophy is 'when in doubt, throw it out'.

Mike Wise

JerrCarol@aol.com wrote:

> In a message dated 6/23/2002 2:58:28 PM Eastern
> Daylight Time, r_pooley@hotmail.com writes:
>
>
>
>> If the vinegar trick works on sand....will it
>> also work on rocks to see
>> if they will change your Ph? I also don't have
>> a supply of car batteries
>> like Dave does. Rich
>
> Yes,... that is where I first heard of it being
> used was to test a rock. Maybe one of the
> resident chemist will explain why vinegar can be
> used to tell if the rock has a pH raising
> quality. The only test I remember from school
> was adding vinegar and baking soda would
> actually blow out a fire.
>
>
> JerryB

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