Question

How will we clean a table if some acid has fallen on i

Answer 1

Acid spills can be dangerous to clean because some are quite corrosive and react vigorously when in contact with certain materials.

Here are some methods that can be used to clean up acid spills:

1) Neutralizing

This can be done using preformed acid neutralizers or home made neutralizers such as mixture of water and baking soda.

Acids that can be neutralized in this manner are: hydrochloric acid and sulphuric acid among others.

2) Using absorbents

Some acids are quite reactive and can produce toxic chemicals when they react with neutralizing agents.

Such acids maybe best cleaned using absorbent. Examples of such acids include perchloric acid and formic acid.

Answer 2

Acid spills are very dangerous as they tend to eat up the most of the surfaces in which they come in contact with.

When there is an acid spill on a table the first step should be to use a neutralizer like sodium hydroxide and then it should be cleaned up with a sponge or a paper towel.

In case it is a wooden table, it is important to do this quickly as acid tends to eat up the wood very quickly compared to a glass surface. However, even the glass surface should be neutralized and cleaned quickly to avoid any stains or breakage.

It is important to be fully covered without any exposure of skin and use acid-resistant gloves, goggles, shoe covers while cleaning the acid spill to avoid any contact of the acid with the human body. All sources of electricity and ignition should be turned off before neutralizing and cleaning.