第三章 Sulfuric Acid p21-24.docVIP

Chapter 3-1 Sulfuric Acid Sulfuric acid (H2SO4), chemical compound, is a colorless, odorless, extremely corrosive, oily liquid. It is sometimes called “oil of vitriol”. Sulfuric acid is one of the most important industrial chemicals. More of it is made each year than is made of any other manufactured chemical; more than 40 million tons were produced in the United States in 1990. It has widely varied uses and plays some part in the production of nearly all manufactured goods. The major use of sulfuric acid is in the production of fertilizers, e.g., superphosphate of lime, Ca(H2PO4)2, and ammonium sulfate, (NH4)2SO4. It is widely used in the manufacture of chemicals, e.g., in making hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, sulfate salts, synthetic detergents, dyes and pigments, explosives, and drugs. It is used in petroleum refining to wash impurities out of gasoline and other refinery products. Sulfuric acid is used in processing metals, e.g., in pickling (cleaning) iron and steel before plating them with tin or zinc. Sulfuric acid serves as the electrolyte in the lead-acid storage battery commonly used in motor vehicles (acid for this use, containing about 33% H2SO4 and with specific gravity about 1.25, is often called battery acid). Concentrated sulfuric acid (18M) is used as a dehydrating agent, that is, to remove water, since it has a tendency to form hydrates such as H2SO4(H2O, H2SO4(2H2O, etc. Sulfuric acid will suck water out of carbohydrates and some other organic compounds which contain oxygen and hydrogen. For example, sulfuric acid will suck water out of sucrose, C12H22O11(s), (cane sugar) to produce a spongy mass of carbon: C12H22O11(s) + 11H2SO4 ----- 12C(s) + 11H2SO4.H2O (3-1) Sulfuric acid is used in the production of nitroglycerine, an inorganic ester organic nitrate, which is used as an explosive but can also be used as a vasodilator, a substance that dilates blood vessels and can be used in the treatment of certain types of heart disease. In the 15th