Name that contaminant

[DA Aquamaster]

I asked if they'd been diving Columbia lately, but that was not the case. The powder is tasteless.

The odd thing was that there was 10 kilos of the contaminants in each of the tanks.

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In other news....Personally, I always have the low skilled, low paid easily replaceable summer help taste the tank contaminants.

 

[rjack321]

Filter media is not powdered. Even saturated its like BBs.

 

[TSandM]

I felt kinda ornery after tasting it.

But you felt kind of ornery before tasting it, too -- I know you.

Could this be residue from some type of tumbling agent?

 

[*dave*]

But you felt kind of ornery before tasting it, too -- I know you.

If anyone knows ornery, it has to be you.

Could this be residue from some type of tumbling agent?

We've been the only facility to service the cylinders and none of our medium would leave a residue like this. It looks as though it was blown in dry, as there aren't any signs of puddling and the coating was roughly consistent.

 

[*dave*]

Filter media is not powdered. Even saturated its like BBs.

Have you ever heard of it passing through a whip? I've never messed with any of it, but wonder what state it would be in after slamming into the bottom of a tank during a fill.

 

[Teamcasa]

It may be ash, a result of combustion of a contaminate. I have it tested in any event.

 

[Delta_P]

Have you ever heard of it passing through a whip? I've never messed with any of it, but wonder what state it would be in after slamming into the bottom of a tank during a fill.

I know of one case many years ago where activated charcoal granules were blown into a tank from an improperly hand packed cannister. They weren't reduced to a fine adhering powder once they got to the tank.

Is the powder continuous throughout the inside of the cylinder? Any evidence of it inside the valve? Would it be feasible to pull the compressor filter to have a look inside and maybe check the fill whips?

 

[rjack321]

Have you ever heard of it passing through a whip? I've never messed with any of it, but wonder what state it would be in after slamming into the bottom of a tank during a fill.

Now that I think more it <could> be dessicant. Not all filter towers are packed with 13x. Its possible the dessicant used was activated alumina. Activated alumina - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Which got saturated in (e.g.) a portable compressor filter. The compressor was moved around and the media shaken, the spring on the filter compressing the wet media and creating a dust. The now loosely packed filter blowing pastey dust into the tank.

I think you need to be looking at filters as well if you are going to figure this out.

 

[airstream]

I do not like the look of that! I have cracked open A LOT of cylinders and have never seen that. I have seen rust oil, slime, water, but not that..

 

[CuNanoTube]

A white, crystalline solid, oh boy.
Does it dissolve in water? Vinegar? Oil? Gasoline?
Can it burn?
What filter media is used?
Does it react with anything?
I enjoy this kind of thing, so post away.