Test for Potassium Iodate in Salt
Potassium iodate is a substance added to traditional table salt. This is done to help enhance the flavor of the salt, to preserve it for longer periods of time, and to help prevent an iodine deficiency. In too large of a quantity, however, potassium iodate will actually serve as a skin irritant, and it can catch fire very easily. If you are curious if the salt in your home contains potassium iodate, you will want to conduct the following test to determine its presence.
Instructions
1. Take one plastic cup and pour 1/2 cup of distilled water into it. This will be the cup in which you make the solution to test the potassium iodate levels. Add 1/2 tsp. of starch to this water.
2. Add 10 drops of iodine solution to the water with the starch. Stir it well using a clean plastic spoon. You need to make sure that no cross-contamination happens between the different sets of water, so you will need to ensure that clean spoons are always used.
3. Put 4 tbsp. of salt into a separate plastic cup. This can be any type of salt that you want to test. However, the salt you commonly use in your home is recommended, as this will let you know if you are absorbing potassium iodate into your system.
4. Pour 1 cup of distilled water into the cup with the salt and stir it well with a new plastic spoon. Not all of the salt may actually dissolve, but this is acceptable. All of the potassium iodate in the salt will have absorbed into the water, if there is in fact any there.
5. Mix 1 tbsp. of white vinegar and 1 tbsp. hydrogen peroxide into the salt mixture. Add 1/2 tsp. of the starch mixture you previously made to the salt water. Stir it well with a new plastic spoon and allow it to sit for a few minutes.
6. Return to the mixture after a few minutes have passed and see if the water has changed color. If it has, then your salt has potassium iodate in it. The chemical reactions cause the water to turn blue-black. The reason this occurs is because iodine is not very soluble in water, thus an iodine reagent will be made when dissolving iodine in water with potassium iodate present. This creates a linear triiodide ion complex that is soluble in water. This linear triiodide ion complex reacts with the starch, causing the water to turn color.
Tags: plastic spoon, potassium iodate, potassium iodate, distilled water, distilled water into, Iodate Salt
