Is this potassium bromide ruined?

Trey · Feb 28, 2016

The bottle was sealed with tape from Photographer's formulary, but it got wet a few months ago. Does it seem like water may have got in the bottle?

It's been a ong time since I've used this suff, but I don't remember the large crystals.

Wayne · Feb 28, 2016

Your picture isn't showing up. If its just clumping, that's pretty normal for KBr and it can just be broken up. If it has recrystallized however, I can't/shouldn't comment.

Trey · Feb 28, 2016

Wayne said:
Your picture isn't showing up. If its just clumping, that's pretty normal for KBr and it can just be broken up. If it has recrystallized however, I can't/shouldn't comment.

Sorry about that. My spacephone is a little too complicated for me.

eddie · Feb 28, 2016

I've had KBr like that. A mortar and pestle will fix it.

Trey · Feb 28, 2016

eddie said:
I've had KBr like that. A mortar and pestle will fix it.

Awesome. Thanks!

Wayne · Feb 28, 2016

I wonder if drying it out might be in order too, since such small amounts are used and that does look like it absorbed a lot of moisture. I'll let someone else answer that question. Mine is clumped too, but yours looks worse than mine. Mine just absorbed humidity but it looks like yours actually got wet.

Gerald C Koch · Feb 28, 2016

Potassium bromide is not very hydroscopic so wouldn't absorb much water. You can break up the clumps.

Wayne · Feb 28, 2016

Why does KBr clump so ready if its not hydroscopic?

Rudeofus · Feb 29, 2016

Wayne said:
Why does KBr clump so ready if its not hydroscopic?

What you see in this bottle of KBr is nothing compared to what really hygroscopic compounds will do. I have a bottle of KSCN that was never submerged in water or anything, just exposed to normal, sometimes high humidity, and the KSCN mostly dissolved in the water it attracted from the air.

Ian Grant · Feb 29, 2016

You need to dry out that KBr, I had some like that and put it in a dish in the oven before re-crushing it.

Ian

Trey · Mar 8, 2016

Thanks for all the input guys.

Is this potassium bromide ruined?

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