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galvanic corrosion/Copper-silver ionization

graphic
Level 11
Since I have started building my new build, I started feeling concerned
about using silver in my loop......
I did have evidence of corrosion in my old/current buiild, ek water blocks,
bitspower connector's , my vrm water block is copper which showed
a small dis-colour (black) when I stripped down loop...
this following link is a interesting read...

http://www.lenntech.com/processes/disinfection/chemical/disinfectants-copper-silver-ionization.htm




move to 2.30 if you wan't ...

It would be nice to get a good understanding of what to do or not.....
I am no rocket scientist. I am thinking is it plated materials that are reacting??



this video has me concerned.......
7,300 Views
13 REPLIES 13

X-ROG
Level 15
Yep, you've got a standard galvanic cell there:

http://chemwiki.ucdavis.edu/Analytical_Chemistry/Electrochemistry/Voltaic_Cells/The_Cell_Potential

Copy paste this into your search box: Standard Cell Potential Example

Your liquid will be acting as an electrolyte and your copper is becoming copper oxide, which is black. Since yourliquid isn't natively silver containing, you should also probably be getting silver hydroxide produced which is also black.

The potential between Chrome and Copper is much less and since your liquid is not a true electrolyte it'll basically prevent it.

I knew my 4 years of Chem degree would finally come in use!

graphic
Level 11
wow 4 years of chem..... cool
hmm, so what your saying is I should not
be mixing my xspc water blocks with my monsoon
fittings which include antimicrobial silver bases, acrylic lock collars

Attention:
The silver on your Silver Bullet Antimicrobial Plug will eventually tarnish to a black color—this is normal for silver and just lets you know it is doing what it is supposed to be doing--interacting with the fluid in your loop and killing microbes. The effective life of your plug will vary based on loop size, initial water quality, computer usage patterns, etc.; but generally, we recommend replacing your Silver Bullet Plugs every 6 to 12 months. Down the road, if you're not sure, just leave your original Silver Bullet installed and add a new one to another available port. Then in another 6 to 12 months, replace the original plug. Keep rotating a new one on that schedule.

sorry copy and pasted from the net... thankyou very much for your response MarshallR@ASUS
I will sit and read your link more carefully, must admit chemistry was not my strogest subjets
when I did my matriculation hmm well over 25 years now lol

abvolt
Level 11
Good info thanks..
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graphic
Level 11
hmm, thanks Arne, nice read........
would like to see an independent study too..

graphic wrote:
hmm, thanks Arne, nice read........
would like to see an independent study too..


Thing is EK sell a nice expensive cooling fluid and this study states simple deionised water and regular drain and refill are best so...

If it concluded EK coolant is best thing...

I use Deionised/distilled water only and change it out every 8 weeks about and when I took apart my loop it was pretty spotless so I'm sticking with that plan for now...

graphic
Level 11
this taken from this link

http://www.lenntech.com/processes/disinfection/chemical/disinfectants-copper-silver-ionization.htm

Copper-silver affectivity depends on the pH value of the water. At a pH value of 9, only one tenth of all Legionella bacteria are removed. When dissolved solid concentrations are high, silver will precipitate. This means silver ions are no longer available for disinfection.
Silver ions easily react with chlorines and nitrates that are present in the water, causing them to no longer be effective.
Some species of microorganisms can become resistant to silver ions. They can remove metal from their systems or convert it to a less toxic product. These microorganisms can become resistant to copper-silver ionization.
Although it is suggested that Legionella bacteria can develop resistance to copper-silver ionization, this disinfectant still appears to be effective for Legionella deactivation.
To affectively kill pathogenic micro organisms, copper and silver ions should be present in the entire water system. When the system is used little and the water flow is quite slow, or when there are dead-end points in the system, this can causes problems for disinfection.

and this taken from this link I just found which is also a good read... as my questions have been asked many times before....
http://www.overclockers.com/pc-water-coolant-chemistry-part-ii/
In general, it is a good idea to drain and refill your PC water-cooling system at least once a year and, in some cases, every six months. Measuring the pH and observing the condition of tubing and waterblock internal surfaces can be a good indicator for when maintenance is required. The chemical properties of the water coolant will change over time as the additives get used up and the coolant becomes contaminated with corrosion byproducts.

Most people don’t have access to a laboratory pH meter, but inexpensive pH indicator strips can be purchased at some drug stores and swimming pool supply stores. When the pH drops below 7, or the water starts looking cloudy, or internal surfaces appear to be accumulating deposits – it’s time to clean the system and replace the coolant.

graphic
Level 11
wow every 8 weeks is very frequent... I couldn't be bothered tbh but good on you Arne....
we spend allot of money on our gear so pays to look after it... I have decided I will get a
pH indicator strips... like I stated above it would have been a good year the water was in there
maybe longer.... the vrm block from Germany showed no corrosion but only like a little black on the surface which
come clean after using acetone, how ever the ek supreme cpu block and the compression fittings
from bitspower showed corrosion similar to what that feller freaking out about in that vid in my first
link... I will have to force myself and regularly maintain my loop...


small edit sorry...
I also use distilled water as I used fesser a long long time ago and that colour **** just
clogged up my loop and performed bad campared to distilled...
I have also been told that distilled is purer than Deionised

Arne_Saknussemm
Level 40
Well the water itself is cheap so it's not like it's not much of an expense and really deionized it may be but not for long if it's flowing through metal so it needs changing...I set up my loop with frequent changes in mind so it's real easy to drain...

Drain and refill might be 15 mins...20 mins tops from when I think about it to finish...

I think lots of loop deposit problems might come from the RADs...they are hard to flush out well and full of sh*t when they come new....gives stuff to deposit on and stuff to wash round your loop and deposit elsewhere....flushing them at the beginning is a time consuming pain but worth it long run...

Yes, in theory you can deionize and still have piranhas swimming in it but distilled doesn't mean pure if it's done badly either...so depends on where you get the water...I can get it in a local chemist and I think it's good stuff from the results so far