Prices of raw chemicals

[John51]

I had a look at the Alibaba site. Who orders a 10 kilo drum of 4-Methylaminophenol sulfate? What does it get used for apart from developing film?

More importantly, is what they are selling in big drums good enough for photographic purposes? iow, is it Metol?

Here's the blurb from one of them:

High quality 4-METHYLAMINOPHENOL HEMI SULFATE CAS NO.55-55-0

• ProName: High quality 4-METHYLAMINOPHENOL HEMI ...
• CasNo: 55-55-0
• Molecular Formula: C7H9NO.1/2H2SO4
• Appearance: White Crystal Powder
• Application: pharmaceutical intermediates
• DeliveryTime: According to the order quantity and or...
• PackAge: According to user requirements to prov...
• Port: Wuhan/ Shanghai / Guangzhou / Tianjin ...
• ProductionCapacity: 50 Metric Ton/Day
• Purity: 98%
• Storage: Store in cool and dry area and keep aw...
• Transportation: EMS、TNT、DHL、UPS、FEDEX、SF、Wuhan Port、Sh...
• LimitNum: 10 Kilogram
• Impurity: 0.01%

 

[Gerald C Koch]

Perhaps a better comparison would be the cost to mix a liter of D-76 compared to buying a bag of Kodak's premixed.

 

[Gerald C Koch]

I had a look at the Alibaba site. Who orders a 10 kilo drum of 4-Methylaminophenol sulfate? What does it get used for apart from developing film?

More importantly, is what they are selling in big drums good enough for photographic purposes? iow, is it Metol?

Here's the blurb from one of them:

High quality 4-METHYLAMINOPHENOL HEMI SULFATE CAS NO.55-55-0

• ProName: High quality 4-METHYLAMINOPHENOL HEMI ...
• CasNo: 55-55-0
• Molecular Formula: C7H9NO.1/2H2SO4
• Appearance: White Crystal Powder
• Application: pharmaceutical intermediates
• DeliveryTime: According to the order quantity and or...
• PackAge: According to user requirements to prov...
• Port: Wuhan/ Shanghai / Guangzhou / Tianjin ...
• ProductionCapacity: 50 Metric Ton/Day
• Purity: 98%
• Storage: Store in cool and dry area and keep aw...
• Transportation: EMS、TNT、DHL、UPS、FEDEX、SF、Wuhan Port、Sh...
• LimitNum: 10 Kilogram
• Impurity: 0.01%

Yes it is metol and probably pure enough for mixing developers. Metol is used in the manufacture of various other chemicals.

 

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

Perhaps a better comparison would be the cost to mix a liter of D-76 compared to buying a bag of Kodak's premixed.

In India where Kodak D-76 is generally not available and has to be imported but the ingredients are available, a liter of D-76 mixed from raw chemicals would cost approximately $1.5 excluding the cost of water. Sulphite itself contributes slightly over 50% to the cost.

 

[Raghu Kuvempunagar]

I computed the cost to mix a liter of Obsidian Aqua working solution from raw chemicals in India (excluding water): less than a dime.