I used to graduate at an institute having physicists as well as chemists, I gues it was no coincidence that only physicists operated with HF, one chemist told me that no chemist in their right mind would touch it
replyThat's not quite accurate (but close enough). We had HF in the chem lab. It lived in a dedicated metal box with a massive neon warning label and a padlock.
replyIt's notable in comparison that all the deadly organics lived together in an unlocked cupboard (vented OFC). I think the only thing I ever saw treated as more of a pariah than HF were radioactive isotopes. Those generally get an entire dedicated room with restricted entry and a tedious mandatory cleaning procedure.
Makes sense. HF deserves the same awe as radioactive material. I've always found both fascinating. Like some kind of dark magic that curses you if you contact it.
replyOh, my dream clean room is of course fully robot automated and I can watch through a big (safety) window.
replyIn my journey to make pcb’s at home I decided to stop once I almost gassed myself and shifted instead to buying gpus
replyI visited a pcb making factory once. Left with an appreciation for the amount of work needed for 80-layer pcbs, and knowing I would not want to deal with making them myself.
replyKnowing that really helps you understand just how valuable semiconductors are as a product.
replyHonest question, is there a way to run the entire process acid-free?
replyNo acids at all? That would be stupendously difficult for no real benefit. So many things are acids, so many useful reactions involve acids, and there's not a significant correlation between "is an acid" and "danger".
replyyes acids capable of etching = danger :)
aktschually
replyNo. Silicon oxide (glass) is extremely tough from a chemical perspective. That's why it's used in chemistry for everything. Barely anything touches it. Also this is the main reason I think that the meme of "silicon based life" is completely absurd and comes from people who only took high school chemistry and built their worldview on that.
replyIs it conceivable that some organic solvent could be synthesized that is, simultaneously harmless to water-based biological life, and capable of etching Silicon oxides?
replyNot really. Organics don't really have any affinity for this type of compound. You could, of course, create some kind of organic fluorinating compound, but it would basically just put you back at square one for safety.
replyThis is the issue I have with people saying that solar power is "clean and eco friendly".
replyIt sure is, if you ignore the fact that you have to have a factory to make it where one of the *nicest* things around is the fucking hydrofluoric acid, and most of the rest will kill you instantly in trace amounts.
The technology is, the production is not but you can contain that, at least in theory. Compare that with gasoline that everytime you obtain energy from it you burn it out of existence and create a mess of the environment.
replyIt is only half as bad as working in the places that make tbose chemicals for use in clean rooms. Swaping out "empty" phosphine tanks is bad, but filling and shipping hundreds of full tanks is worse.
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