Naked Science Forum
Non Life Sciences => Chemistry => Topic started by: charli on 09/06/2021 03:52:08
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Debi would like to know:
"Is there an inexpensive way to make boron become carbon? Or, an iron exchange using easily obtainable natural methods? Our water source has too much boron for agricultural purposes and reverse osmosis is proving too pricey to continue using."
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Turning boron into carbon would require nuclear processes. There are various boron isotopes that decay into carbon via beta decay, but they only make up a trace amount of natural boron (they all have half-lives on the order of milliseconds or less). In principle, one might be able to bombard the principle isotopes of boron-10 and boron-11 with neutrons in order to turn them into those unstable isotopes. I don't think that's even remotely practical to do on a large scale, though. I think you're stuck just filtering out the boron and then adding carbon artificially.
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There may not be a "Natural" way to convert boron into carbon.
However both these elements are ultimately composed of nuclear particles - protons, neutrons and electrons
If these particles can be manipulated, by future Scientific techniques which use a kind of "nuclear chemistry", then it may become possible.
Who would rule anything out for Science!
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If these particles can be manipulated, by future Scientific techniques which use a kind of "nuclear chemistry", then it may become possible.
The person asking the question appears to want to use this as a solution to their problem imminently, so what's possible in the distant future isn't going to help them much.
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I was suggesting that what isn't possible now, may become so in the future.
However, I take your point. We should confine ourselves to the present state of the art, when replying to questions.
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Who would rule anything out for Science!
Those of us who understand that it isn't magic.