Etching Holes ...

[R.G. Keen]

>Hey, I like this idea!
>But would it really work? I think Aluminium panels have a thick oxide
>on its top that makes etching difficult (?)
I don't know about aluminum panels, but a test cake pan ( %-O ) which
should have had an oxide coating better than anything except deliberate
anodizing went all the way through in less than five minutes...

>
>> This process releases some really nasty fumes, perhaps even chlorine
>> gas, really bad news;
>
>Hmm, I don't think so. You can etch aluminium (if the oxide is removed ...)
>with simple Hydrochloric acid (HCl). In this case, there is just some H2
>gas (explosive, but not toxic).
The unfortunate cake pan released bitter, choking vapors with a
yellowish cast. I don't know that it was chlorine, but I'm cowardly
enough that I wouldn't do the ... ahem, test ... again without assuming
that it might have some free chlorine or HCl fumes

>If the Fe2O3-Method works, there should not be much gas at all.
Again, the test cake pan released a lot.

R.G.