Reactions between mercury-wetted aluminium and liquid water

The reaction of solid aluminium with liquid water has been studied by several investigators. In this paper, the reaction between mercury-wetted aluminium and liquid water is described. At 25 and 90 °C, the reaction products were identified by X-ray diffraction analysis as bayerite,-Al₂O₃.3H₂O, and boehmite,-Al₂O₃.H₂O, respectively. The transitions of these hydrates to-Al₂O₃ upon heating were indicated by endothermic peaks on DTA thermograms and weight-loss measurements by TGA.The wetting mercury film acts as a medium for rapid transport of aluminium in solution from the solid-liquid interface to the liquid-vapour or liquid-liquid interface. This unique condition produces readily identifiable materials since it avoids some of the difficulties encountered by other investigators in their attempts to study the reactions of air and liquid water directly with aluminium foil or bulk samples.