[meteorite-list] Re: rust and crust

From: mark ford <markf_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:16:35 2004
Message-ID: <6CE3EEEFE92F4B4085B0E086B2941B3101433A_at_s-southern01.s-southern.com>

Stephen,

I have also treated Irons with NaOH , it is important to wash them well
in good quality 'distilled' water, and alcohol (preferably anhydrous &
pure) and dry in a drying oven for a few hours, then quickly apply a
coating of VCI/metal protector [before the iron cools] (otherwise
moisture condenses back onto the surface, when it gets cold). You should
handle irons with gloves until they are protected, otherwise
fingerprints start the rust cycle off.

One of my other Hobbies is Clock repair, and we often have similar
problems with watch/clock movements, you find that once you clean a
metal surface such as a watch movement, it is far more likely to tarnish
than before! So you need to get some sort of barrier onto the surface to
prevent condensation & corrosion, most clock cleaning solutions have a
VCI added for this very purpose, you can also wipe with oil, (although
some oils contain water!!) or lacquer of course as a last resort.

I suspect that the use of a 'clock cleaner solution' (Non-Ammonia
based!!) or 'clock rinse' with VCI added, could be a good thing to use
as a cleaner to remove rust, as people have been putting a lot of
research into corrosion prevention in this area with good results, and
there are numerous concoctions out there to prevent rust.

I don't know if anyone has ever done any serious research into corrosion
prevention in meteorites, maybe we should bite the bullet and start a
large scale trial, to see just what works an what doesn't?=20


Just my thoughts,
Mark Ford
Received on Fri 22 Aug 2003 03:41:05 AM PDT