'Occupational Health Guideline for HCl, Centers for Disease Control' Without even emphasizing the harmful effects of the aluminum on the body (such as its direct correlation with Alzheimer's) since most water treatment processes include aluminum use anyway (not to mention any of the other plethora of products and methods exposing us to aluminum.) Considering the HCl mentioned in said quote would probably exceed in urgency. That being said I would venture to suspect this build-up is observed more greatly in times when the sun heats the aluminum of your ladder. The product is aluminum chloride, a white powder that fumes in air, reacting with water to form HCl gas and aluminum oxide.' 'Aluminum and chlorine do not react rapidly at room temperature, but if the aluminum is heated, the reaction is vigorous. the bar is much larger than a bike frame! So I'll have to go the protective rust coat route.įrom a chemical perspective, although salt crystals may closely resemble what you are observing my hypothesis is that the white powder build-up is aluminum chloride. 'ĭon't think anodizing is going to be a possibility. I would limit yourself to anodizing aluminium in fairly small amounts - if you want to anodize a large object you need a lot of electrical power and a lot of acid, so if you want to do an entire bike frame in one go, I suggest you contact an aluminium anodizing company. Typically of course, black is supposed to be one of the most difficult colours to achieve and commercial black anodizing dye fetches the highest price.Īnodizing aluminium (or indeed anodizing aluminum) is a fairly simple process, and providing you can lay your hands on the correct chemicals (ie sulfuric acid) it is fairly straightforward to do simple diy anodizing aluminium in the home. With optical applications, black is the most popular anodizing colour to reduce internal reflections. This can be used to great artistic effect, producing aluminium parts with strikingly tasteless colours to adorn your motor bike or, more topically, telescope. The layer is then sealed and the colour appears as part of the aluminium metal itself. Coloured dye seeps into the microscopic pores of the anodized layer and colours it. The other advantage of anodizing aluminium is the potential of coloured anodizing dye. This is known as anodizing - so called because the aluminium part forms the anode in the electrolysis bath. The process involves suspending the aluminium in and acid bath and passing an electric current through the it.

Using chemical processes it is possible to build a carefully controlled layer of aluminium hydroxide on the surface of the metal which is extremely hard - much harder and more durable than the rough natural oxidised layer that normally forms. Thankfully for the aluminum industry there is a technique which overcomes the inherent softness of the metal and protects against further oxidation. After a period of time the aluminium 'rusts' - slowly producing a white powdery coat. This is why aluminium is known for its resilience in corrosive environments - eg car radiators or boats. However, with aluminium a rough layer of aluminium oxide forms which strongly inhibits further oxidation. Aluminium is more reactive than iron, and, as such, will rust more readily.

It oxidises quite readily to produce iron oxide - or rust as it's more commonly known. We are familiar with the action of the environment on iron. 'Chemically speaking, aluminium is an extremely reactive metal.

Will aluminium rust