Possible rust remover for gas tank

[Mad Mac]

Here is a 1942 Chev petrol tank dipped in molasses as described earlier in post #9. Prior to treatment the whole tank was as bad as the rusty part, which remained rusty because my molasses tank was not deep enough to submerge the whole petrol tank. Looking at this picture, why would anyone not use molasses?

[Joe K]

Originally Posted by Mad Mac

Looking at this picture, why would anyone not use molasses?

Open minded, I'll work with you on this.

Here's an interesting article I found on the subject.

Why Molasses Gets Rid of Rust
http://staging.newscientist.com/lastword/
Question
I have a friend who uses molasses to clean rust off old iron items collected from the bush. The rusty iron article is placed in a jar of molasses solution (nine parts water, one part molasses) and left for two weeks. After this time, the article comes out clean and almost shiny. What is happening here?

Answer
Molasses contains chelating agents. These are made of molecules that are shaped a bit like the claws of a crab--the word chelating comes directly from the Latin word chele, meaning claw. They can envelop metal atoms on the surface of an object, trapping them and removing them. Molasses owes its properties to cyclic hydroxamic acids which are powerful chelators of iron.

More of these compounds are found if the molasses is derived from sugar beet rather than cane sugar. The plants from which molasses is made presumably use these chelating agents to help them extract minerals from the soil. Interestingly, there are aerobic microorganisms that use similar cyclic hydroxamic acids to scavenge iron. So plants and microbes appear to use the same chelation strategy to obtain their daily ration of iron.

The same process is at work when you clean old coins with Vegemite or cola. The power of chelating agents also explains why the insides of tomato tins need to be lacquered. The citric acid in the tomatoes would dissolve the metal of the container if the lacquer were not present. Household cleaning agents, especially detergents and shampoos, also rely on chelation. These soften water to make it more effective during the cleaning process.

Chelation has its uses in medicine, too. EDTA or ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid is used as a chelating agent to control levels of calcium in the body and can reduce the effects of mercury or lead poisoning.

Ben Selinger, Department of Chemistry, Australian National University. Ben Selinger is the author of Chemistry in the Marketplace and Why the Watermelon will not Ripen in your Armpit (Allen & Unwin)

Gosh, I almost want to find out more about that armpit thing?

Wot a tool this Internet, eh?

Joe K

[Cockshutt Kid]

Joe K. When restoring antique tractors, what you are suggesting is done frequently. Nuts and bolts are placed in the tank, an then the tank is fastened to the wheel of a tractor using lengths of threaded rod and bungee cords, and it is simply taken for a drive. Normally tractor tanks don't have any baffles, so I an not sure how well the " abrasive" would circulate in a Model A tank. might be interesting to try? Jim.

[ronn]

Have also heard guys strap a tank to a portable cement mixer, install some large rocks and liquid and let the mixer run for a few hours. Cleans the tank up fairly quickly.
A piece of chain can be used in place of the rocks...........

[Cool Hand Lurker]

Originally Posted by GT66PONY

I use Arm and Hammer WASHING soda ! I have also used Vinegar Both worked well.

Are you using this as the solution for electrolysis or using it by itself for rust removal without the electric current?

[Beechtech]

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