Re: [ATM] Cerium Oxide.. and Color

[Lawrence Sayre <lsayre@neo.rr.com>]

Russell Jocoy wrote:

>
>
>     Geoff,         I would question the cerium oxide of a different 
> color... From the white color
> it sounds , or feels like Aluminum oxide... 


All of the chemical properties websites I visited upon doing a search 
for "Cerium Dioxide" (the true name, its formula being CeO2, and with 
mainly the ATM crowd distorting this to 'Cerium Oxide')  stated that the 
color should be pure white to very pale yellow (with the latter color 
being for less pure grades, I assume).

All of the CeO2 sold by 'Salem distributing'  (perhaps the largest 
distributor of glass grinding and polishing agents in the US)  is white, 
in my experience.

For years many of the ATM old timers used a compound called "Barnesite" 
[chemical formula: Na2V6O16·3(H2O)], which is red.  I believe that 
Barnesite was (voluntarily?) taken off of the ATM market for some reason 
that I can't remember, but I seem to think it was either a proclivity to 
have trace to moderate radioactivity, or its toxicity level, with my 
strong gut feeling being that it was for the former.  Barnesite is not 
to be confused with Rouge, but its action was more akin to the slow 
action of Rouge than the quick action of Cerium Dioxide.

If some Barnesite was mixed in with Cerium Oxide, I would assume the 
resulting color to be pink.  I'm not suggesting that this is in fact 
happening, but I'm just thinking out loud (through my fingers) here.

Lawrence Sayre

 
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