Analytical Method to Monitor Industrial Pickling Baths Initially Constituted by HF, HNO<sub>3</sub>

Abstract

The present study couples the acid/basis titration and the ICP analysis in order to monitor the concentrations of nitric and hydrofluoric acids, and presents into baths used to pickle alloys of titanium or stainless steel, largely employed in the aeronautic industry. The pickling of the alloys releases various metallic cations able to react with HF in order to lead to metal-fluoride complexes and free H + , the last being able to react with the basis. In this study, it was determined: the most significant correlations providing the number of the protons released by the complexation of the metallic cation by the fluoride. The proposed method based on: 1) these correlations; 2) the titration pH = f(V KOH ) curves; and 3) the content of metallic cations determined by ICP, enables the monitoring of the content of HNO 3 and HF into the pickling bath. Assuming that one bath was used for one type of alloy (alloys of Titanium for example, or alloys of stainless steel), then the proposed method appears providing reliable concentration values of both acids as well as metallic cations.