Aluminum or Magnesium?

[griff01]

I don't believe that Ts-Off-Road was trying to mislead anyone. I believe that he was just making a point that if a person is careless with ANYTHING (including thoriated tungsten) then you can get injured, sick, or die from it.

Point taken.

Griff

[Burnt hands]

Magnesium vs aluminum

Xray,

You have picked a good quick method to test for magnesium with the shavings test. The camping stores have magnesium fire starters for just this use.

This should separate magnesium from alum.

I don't know of a valid method of determining the exact alloy type except thru the use of a Niton xray gun. This is very expensive equipment and I have nobody near me who has one.

I can offer this: if you determine your alloy is magnesium, I have a 3/8" thick plate of mg AZ31B. I will slice a piece off for you to try to tig weld if this helps.

If your piece is alum, it may be easier to find the proper tig alloy.
I defer to others on this forum for their expertise.

good luck

[Bodybagger]

Titrate with Muriatic Acid

Here's a simple test based on the stochiometric reaction of these metals with HCl.

You'll need an acurate balance capable of measuring to the nearest .01 grams or so...

Cut a sample of at least 1/10th of a gram of your unknown metal and weigh it accurately. Cut a sample of at least 1/10th gram sample of known aluminum. Place each in a separate nonmetallic container with about 50 ml of distilled water.

Using commercial 20 degree baume Muriatic Acid (which is 10.17 molar hydrochloric acid), and using a small syringe or other accurate volumetric measuring device, add precisely 1 ml of the acid to each container and stir, giving it time to digest the sample.

When the bubbles have stopped (perhaps 5 minutes later), remove the partially digested samples.

This amount of acid will digest 0.124 grams of magnesium but will only digest 0.091 grams of aluminum. If they weigh the same after the reaction, they are aluminum. If the unknown is much lighter than the known aluminum sample (or completely gone), it is likely magnesium.

[Randy Forbes]

Seems like I read that vinegar will start to bubble up on magnesium .

Yes, this works.

Put a few shavings of each in separate drops of vineager; the aluminum will do nothing, and the magnesium will react.

[Blackbird455]

Hey XRAY..............

You could do all this stuff involving experimentation with chemicals left over from your meth lab.........or.........

You could go to a recycler, and have them shoot it with a spectrometer.

In the scheme of things, it is a non destructive test.

I believe that it is a micro diameter laser that vaporizes a few surface particles , and then sniffs the particles out.

I do know that SOME laser spectrometers can even tell you the EXACT alloy , not just the name of the metal.

10% rule guys, try to be 10% smarter than the metal you are working with.

[Blackbird455]

Well, did you ever find out what you were dealing with?

[Edsnet]

Mag test

I saw on speed channel today . Vinegar reachs with magnesium and not with aluminum. Poor a few drops of vinegar on metal if a change occurs it is mag.

[kiwi]

Here is what you are looking for:

Below is the URL

http://www.oxinst.com/wps/wcm/connect/Oxford+Instruments/Products/X-ray+Fluorescence/X-MET5000+for+Scrap+sorting+and+metal+analysis/X-MET5000+for+Scrap+sorting+and+metal+analysis

Find a scrap yard that has one of these hand held instruments.

A quicker solution might be to phone 1-847-439-4404 and ask if there is someone close to you that has one.

Just an idea.

Nick