Looks like Mr. Ho’s chemistry lesson is spot on.??
Repeated??with the same solution, adding the same metal chunk.??
This time not so effervescent but I gave it enough time.??
End result the metal chunk??was somewhat damaged, turning from grey to dark.
No characteristic smell of chlorine or yellowing (normally associated with??Cl?)
Likely H? no pop test attempted.??
Reaction:
2Ho(s) + 6HCl(aq) → 2HoCl?(aq) + 3H?(g)??
No reaction to water?
The final solution pH is about 2
Otherwise, to my dismay, the solution was??quite colorless
Not filtered. Syringed into my clear transparent medical vial.??
Tested under??fluorescent light in a dark room -it immediately turned pinkish!
I’ll keep this for testing optical light properties.??
Tonight (local time), I’ll be flying to Laos for a short vacation.??
Will follow up when I return.??
Pics of solution under sunlight shade(colorless) and pink under flourescent light to follow?
Thanks
On Friday, March 28, 2025, 2:23 AM, Dude via groups.io <dfemer@...> wrote:
If it was reacting with
H2O you’d get H2 If it was reacting with the HCl you’d get Cl. And Ho(OH) which
may have neutralized the solution. But I’m no chemist. What’s the ph of the end
solution?
We should include this
with optical spectroscopy group io as well
Dud
?
Dude
Dropped
one of my 10g pieces of 99.9% pure holmium into dilute HCl.Reaction was??vigorous ,cloudy and
bubbly (H? gas). I probably stopped it too soon.
?
After
effervescence stopped: clear solution but it had a??brief pink tint under
fluorescent light. Hard to confirm because it’s dilute .The holmium chunk
was??mostly unharmed.
?
Try
again tomorrow to see if the color changes more clearly. If so, this could
mirror how??holmium glass works.Concentrated HCl feels too risky for now
?
?
On Friday, March 28, 2025, 12:19 AM, Dude via groups.io
<dfemer@...> wrote:
Taray,
Good match with?
the standard. The lesser degree of the transmission and absorption peaks is
curious. I wonder if the solution is not saturated which produces a lower
absorption. What does a more concentrated HCl solution do?
Dud
?
?
Acquired Holmium Metal (Ho)
?
Here’s an intriguing rare earth metal:Holmium (Ho)though I
occasionally confuse its symbol with Hafnium (Hf)Hafnium is a transition metal,
not a rare earths
?
The name “Holmium” derives from Holmia,the Latin name for
Stockholm, honoring its Swedish discovery. However, I appreciate the
serendipitous overlap with the Chinese surname Ho , a nod to China’s dominance
in rare earth production and refining—a sector they command with ~60% global
supply.??
I acquired this 99.9% pure Holmium primarily for its sharp,
well-defined absorbance and transmittance spectra, which make it a calibration
standard in spectroscopy. Its magnetocaloric properties also intrigued me,
though my DIY experiments (using ice cubes and infrared thermometers) to detect
temperature changes remain inconclusive—perhaps due to insufficient sensitivity
or sample size.??
?
-Medical Uses:Holmium lasers are widely employed in urology for
laser lithotripsy(urinary stone ablation) etc
-Reacts vigorously with dilute HCl, producing hydrogen gas (H?)
and a colorless Ho?? solution. Notably, my sample lacks an oxide layer, ideal
for reflectance spectroscopy.??
?
-XRF Testing:Conducted to confirm elemental purity (no significant
impurities detected).??
- Spectral Alignment:Matches quite well with NIST Standard
Reference Material 2034 Holmium Oxide Solution Wavelength Standard), a
30-year-stable reference for spectrophotometry.??
?
Attachments
- Sample image : Ho metal??after HCl??reaction having almost the same pristine
appearance.
- Absorbance/transmittance spectra in Dil HCl
- Reference standards report.??(Based on Ho oxide liquid wavelength)
Xrf?
Files and pics provided?
Thanks?
?
On Thursday, March 27, 2025, 1:10 PM,
taray singh via groups.io <sukhjez@...> wrote:
Text and files to follow..
