Cadmium????

[mdr8088]

It’s been a while, but I have a question. The more I research Cadmium, the more concerned I am. I went on my yearly pilgrimage to the local metal recycler to trade aluminum for lead. While digging through barrels of lead I found two 3/8 inch rolls of what I thought was a type of lead solder. Got home and found a tag on one of the rolls that said Cadmium wire. Other than sounding like it can kill you at a hundred yards, I learned it melts at just shy of 700degrees. Can I cast with this? Thanks in advance. Steve.

[USSR]

I have to admit, I never heard of Cadmium wire before this thread. So, I googled it. Seems like it mostly comes in 1mm and 2mm diameters. Just yesterday my trip to the scrap yard produced a little over 4 pounds of what looks like solder and was bought as solder, but now it has me wondering. The diameter of this wire is 0.07", which falls in the range of most Cadmium wire. Any way I can tell whether it's solder or Cadmium wire?

Don

[Winger Ed.]

Any way I can tell whether it's solder or Cadmium wire?

Years ago I was melting what I thought was Lead that I got from the scrap yard.
I was smelting it in my pro-melt I had turned up as high as it'd go.

I let it sit for a few hours, came back and it had a thick, dark brown crust on top of the melt,
and the level in the pot had noticeably shrunk down.
I asked a customer buddy who was a metalurgical engineer about it.
He told me it sounded like it was Cadmium, and by weight it was about half cancer.

I didn't get it tested, I just took him at his word, and sold it back to the scrap yard.

[405grain]

Winger Ed: If you had your pot turned all the way up and then left it for hours, then that brown crust of junk could have been oxidized lead. Cadmium is nasty stuff. It makes for some really good silver braze that that flows very well and makes good joints, but don't breath any of the fumes or it's going to be a race between cancer and a brain tumor to see which one does you in first. Lead oxide is nasty too. From what you described it sounds like you made lead oxide.

[Stephen Cohen]

I must admit I also worry these days about what I am casting with at times. I had a kidney removed with cancer in 2004 and just found I now have on in the bladder, it does make one wonder. Regards Stephen

[Jeff Michel]

Cadmium is added to silver braze (not solder) to promote wetting and flow properties. With proper ventilation/PPE it's not a big risk. Without it, it can kill you. I can't think of any other application other than silver brazing it would commonly used. Silver braze containing cadmium is banned in Europe and the UK but you can still get it in the US. The Cadmium bearing silver flows at a lower temperature (1100-1200F) than cadmium free braze. I use a considerably amount in the shop and prefer to Cadmium free.

[USSR]

Out of an abundance of caution, I sent a piece to BNE for testing. Better safe than sorry.

Don

[Winger Ed.]

all the way up and then left it for hours, then that brown crust of junk could have been oxidized lead. .

I couldn't figure it out at the time.

I've absent mindedly left my pot on over night, and not seen anything like that.
All I'd ever seen before was the usual skin of gray or sometimes sort of a gold color.

After a few, maybe a couple of hours, the dark brown stuff was about an inch thick and had a real stiff/crusty texture to it.

[john.k]

Used to be widely used for plating steel....very simple to use ,too......I know its supposed to be nasty,seems everthing I worked with at 20 was.......Anyway,on one of those frozen trucking shows ,was a crashed semi loaded with 20 tons of cadmium ingots.....heading for the Alberta oilfields .....What use is the metal in oil production?

[SweetMk]

Anyway,on one of those frozen trucking shows ,was a crashed semi loaded with 20 tons of cadmium ingots.....heading for the Alberta oilfields ....

.What use is the metal in oil production?

Bury the cadmium ingot in the ground, electrically connect the ingot to the oil pipeline,,
the cadmium will protect the steel oil pipeline from corrosion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathodic_protection

Typically, zinc is used,, but, cadmium will work if it is more cost effective.

[Stephen Cohen]

I was under the impression cadmium was used in car batteries and is one reason I wont use them in casting. SweetMK thanks for that info, it never ceases to amaze me how much knowledge is in this group. Regards Stephen

[popper]

Cad. is used in older rechargeable batteries. Also used in a lot of electronic stuff. Metallic version of flouride. Very good corrosion inhibitor, used in ship paint.

[Lagamor]

I bought some medical lead that had cadmium in it. I didn’t know it at the time but that lead was softer than pure lead and melted at 550 degrees. I have to dilute it to make it useable.

[USSR]

Pretty sure it was not cadmium in that medical lead. Cadmium melts at 610 degrees, while lead melts at 621 degree. Not much difference there.

Don

[MrWolf]

Where did you find a scraper willing to sell to us peons in WV? I am in the NE almost panhandle so stuck with MD and VA and they won't sell. Heck, they won't even take aluminum cans due to covid! Asked the were they planning on drinking from them? Guess they didn't appreciate the comment.

[JSnover]

Used to see cadmium plated hardware for aircraft and there was still a requirement for cadmium plated bushings in at least one application, maybe 15 years ago. But the cadmium wiped off so easily it was almost a joke.

[mdr8088]

I’d rather not say with big brother always listening. It’s the only place left that I can buy lead. As far as the cadmium goes, going to take it back. Even if it was a 50 some dollar mistake, it’s better than messing with it. Half my family has died from cancer anyways, but no need to seal the deal. Thanks to all who responded.