[TowerTalk] Tower chemical ground rod electrolyte mystery -- Salt is not only table salt... NaCl

[Gary Saboe]

The salt to use for pouring inside ("charging") a tower chemical ground rod
for its leeching electrolyte is confusing due to the common use of the term,
salt.

Salt - definition 
- crystalline chemical compound  
-- a crystalline compound formed from the neutralization of an acid by a
base containing a metal or group acting like a metal

Sea salts: - NaCl  - Na2SO4  - MgSO4  - MgCl2  as example naturally
occurring sea salts.
Used as "Road salts": - NaCl  - CaCl2  - KCl  - MgCl2  - Na2SO4  - CaSO4  -
K2SO4  - MgSO4  used for depressing freezing point of water
(Sodium chloride, Calcium chloride, Potassium chloride, Magnesium chloride,
Sodium sulfate, Calcium sulfate, Potassium sulfate, Magnesium sulfate)
Typical road salt used in past would be NaCl when temp above 10deg F., CaCl2
when temp below 10deg F. with sand.

NaCl
- Commonly used product: Table salt
Sodium (Na+) and Chloride (Cl-)

MgSO4
- Commonly used product: Epsom salt (Magnesium Sulfate heptahydrate,
MgSO4·7H2O)
Magnesium (Mg++) and Sulfate (SO4--)

Which salt is sold to use as electrolyte in tower chemical ground rod?
Unnamed mystery salt - MgSO4
http://www.altfabrication.com/products/guide.aspx?productgroup=GC-AGE-02

And I couldn't resist...
http://books.google.com/books?id=-8vHlnSQVSEC&pg=PA27&lpg=PA27&dq=mgso4+elec
trolyte&source=web&ots=Jmc9FVwPcm&sig=fRYVTdWp0pSIyczhYOViJa_4a9Q#PPP1,M1

Hopefully helpful to some fellow OCD hams...  To others I apologize early...
No sequel to follow.

Gary, NØGS


-----Original Message-----
From: towertalk-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:towertalk-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of N6FD
Sent: Wednesday, September 19, 2007 6:50 PM
To: towertalk at contesting.com
Cc: Russell Hill
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Salt contamination

Basically all the salt that is going to be on the earth is here either as
NaCl or its constituent parts.  Geology and meteorology  distributes it
around.  Places with a lot of rainfall don't have much, places with little
rainfall have a lot.  Local plants and animals have gotten used to the local
amount of salt.  They tend to do badly when salt levels are higher.  I live
on what used to be the bottom of a lake 10,000 or so years ago.  The local
plants do well with fairly high salt levels.  We also don't have an acid
rain problem, but sometimes have alkali rain problems...

73, Erich
N6FD


Russell Hill wrote:
> Question from a dummy:
>
> Is highway salt manufactured, that is does it add to the amount of 
> salt on the earth, or is it simply a redistribution from there (good) to
here (bad)?
> In other words is salt bad when it shows up in MY back yard or 
> highway?  I really don't know.
>
> Thanks,
> Rusty, na5tr
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Richard HIll" <rehill at ix.netcom.com>
> To: <towertalk at contesting.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, September 18, 2007 7:42 PM
> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Salt contamination
>
>
>   
>> Rates of salt use are declining rapidly on highways.  Alternatives to 
>> NaCl are getting serious consideration due to environmental 
>> realities.  This is not a good argument for salting your property.
>>
>> The general environmental consequences of salt are significant in 
>> many parts of the world, and the expense of salt reduction is high.  
>> A search for salt intrusion on google will give many examples across 
>> the US and the world.
>>
>> That is not to say that chemical ground rods are bad or an 
>> environmental concern.  It would be interesting to understand what 
>> risk they pose.  I suspect little--I suspect that the salts are 
>> contained in bentonite and will leech slowly and at low 
>> concentrations.
>>
>> Let's avoid wild conjecture and inappropriate comparisons.
>>
>> Rich
>> NU6T