# Feasibility of body disposal with acid and plastic barrel a la 'Breaking Bad': NEED ANSWER FAST! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 2, 2012, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469 "2012-10-02T13:20:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Gedd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gedd/32/4938_2.png) [@Gedd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gedd)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/21 "2012-10-02T20:38:42Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > What you really need is some good ol’ [chlorine trifluoride](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorine_trifluoride) and a good pair of running shoes… 😃 > > May, however, not be the best choice if you’re seeking to keep a low profile… Holy crap that’s crazy stuff! “It is, of course, extremely toxic, but that’s the least of the problem. It is hypergolic [meaning it spontaneously ignites on contact] with every known fuel, and so rapidly hypergolic that no ignition delay has ever been measured. It is also hypergolic with such things as cloth, wood, and test engineers, not to mention asbestos, sand, and water — with which it reacts explosively.” - John D. Clark The Nazis were going to use it as a combined incendiary weapon and poison gas! ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/22 "2012-10-02T21:51:55Z")
> [@Gedd](#): > > Holy crap that’s crazy stuff! > > “It is, of course, extremely toxic, but that’s the least of the problem. It is hypergolic [meaning it spontaneously ignites on contact] with every known fuel, and so rapidly hypergolic that no ignition delay has ever been measured. It is also hypergolic with such things as cloth, wood, and test engineers, not to mention asbestos, sand, and water — with which it reacts explosively.” - John D. Clark > > The Nazis were going to use it as a combined incendiary weapon and poison gas! With all apologies for the ClF3 hijack, here’s [a little more](http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/2008/02/26/sand_wont_save_you_this_time.php) from the rather enjoyable subsection, “[Things I Won’t Work With](http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/things_i_wont_work_with/)”, of an organic chemist’s blog: > [@](#): > > There’s a report from the early 1950s. . .of a _one-ton_ spill of the stuff. It burned its way through a foot of concrete floor and chewed up another meter of sand and gravel beneath, completing a day that I’m sure no one involved ever forgot. That process, I should add, would necessarily have been accompanied by copious amounts of horribly toxic and corrosive by-products: it’s bad enough when your reagent ignites wet sand, but the clouds of hot hydrofluoric acid are your special door prize if you’re foolhardy enough to hang around and watch the fireworks. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/23 "2012-10-02T22:57:47Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > KOH may work better. You can get it in concentrated form as a wood stripper. I chemist buddy of mine once said to me “Draino cracks me up. Wholesale cost of NaOH in 50-pounds bags is about 15 bucks.” This conversation occurred in the late 1980s. So for cost-effective mobster disposal, wouldn’t I be better off just using pure NaOH? After all, I’ve got a handy water supply right there. Any dental fillings, gallstones, Teflon implants, Legos, etc. can just be scraped up after the fact and thrown in the trash. You can’t get DNA off a Lego, so there’s no worries there. What is the wholesale cost of pure NaOH these days, anyway? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/24 "2012-10-02T23:18:56Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > I chemist buddy of mine once said to me “Draino cracks me up. Wholesale cost of NaOH in 50-pounds bags is about 15 bucks.” This conversation occurred in the late 1980s. So for cost-effective mobster disposal, wouldn’t I be better off just using pure NaOH? After all, I’ve got a handy water supply right there. Any dental fillings, gallstones, Teflon implants, Legos, etc. can just be scraped up after the fact and thrown in the trash. You can’t get DNA off a Lego, so there’s no worries there. What is the wholesale cost of pure NaOH these days, anyway? Looks like $1/lb. for NaOH vs. $3/lb for KOH, so your idea is a winner. ---
**Author:** ![Szlater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2012, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/25 "2012-10-02T23:39:00Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > That isn’t to say that enough HF (and they were using gallons of the stuff) wouldn’t do that to a body, the tub, and the floor. And if I remember correctly, there were plenty of, um… chunks. The thing that was never clear to me, although having never studied or taught highschool chemistry in the US I may well be utterly wrong, is why does Walt’s highschool chemistry lab have gallons of hydrofluoric acid? I mean, in my late '80s, early '90s highschool chemistry lab we had one tiny bottle of the stuff, along with the other tiny bottles of high concentration nitric, sulphuric and hydrochloric acids all stored in a fume cupboard (there were lots of big bottles of various dilutions of those acids, except hydrofluoric). There were probably slightly larger bottles in the fume cupboard in the chemistry prep room to make up the dilutions, but that was it…it’s not like there’s an awful lot of call for hydrofluoric acid in GCSE and A-Level chemistry. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/26 "2012-10-03T00:23:28Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Okay chemists, if HF isn’t particularly good at doing away with a corpse, what works best? Sulfuric acid or lye have been suggested. Anything else? [Alien acid blood.](http://www.alien5.org/alien-movie-movies-images-image-gallery-alien-film-films-images-image/images-image-gallery/43-alien-acid-eat-floor-melts-space-ship.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/27 "2012-10-03T00:35:56Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > With all apologies for the ClF3 hijack > [@Wikipedia](#): > > It ignites glass on contact :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/28 "2012-10-03T00:39:12Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > What you really need is some good ol’ [chlorine trifluoride](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorine_trifluoride) and a good pair of running shoes… 😃 > > May, however, not be the best choice if you’re seeking to keep a low profile… Stand around with 50 parts per million. [Prepare to die in 15 minutes.](http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=AD0266121) ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/29 "2012-10-03T00:42:01Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > …Oh, and if you are thinking about responding with “You do know the show is fictional, right?” do the human race a favor and kill yourself before you reproduce. ) Personal jabs are not permitted in General Questions. Even at thought crimes. ---
**Author:** ![coffeecat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coffeecat/32/3405_2.png) [@coffeecat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coffeecat)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/30 "2012-10-03T01:05:18Z")
Some say [pigs](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=667356). ---
**Author:** ![temp\_user](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@temp\_user](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/temp_user)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/31 "2012-10-03T02:24:13Z")
Maybe Ernie Kaltenbrunner would let you use his crematorium ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/32 "2012-10-03T02:28:10Z")
> [@temp\_user](#): > > Maybe Ernie Kaltenbrunner would let you use his crematorium I don’t want to owe him a favor. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/33 "2012-10-03T02:34:51Z")
> [@Leo\_Bloom](#): > > Personal jabs are not permitted in General Questions. Even at thought crimes. [Moderator Note] **Leo** , that’s not a personal jab since it’s not directed at another poster. Just for your information. If you’re going to junior mod, at least get the rules straight.😉 Colibri General Questions Moderatore ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/34 "2012-10-03T02:48:32Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > What you really need is some good ol’ [chlorine trifluoride](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorine_trifluoride) and a good pair of running shoes… 😃 > > May, however, not be the best choice if you’re seeking to keep a low profile… > [@Gedd](#): > > Holy crap that’s crazy stuff! > > “It is, of course, extremely toxic, but that’s the least of the problem. It is hypergolic [meaning it spontaneously ignites on contact] with every known fuel, and so rapidly hypergolic that no ignition delay has ever been measured. It is also hypergolic with such things as cloth, wood, and test engineers, not to mention asbestos, sand, and water — with which it reacts explosively.” - John D. Clark > > The Nazis were going to use it as a combined incendiary weapon and poison gas! That’s not the only :eek: quote about that stuff: > [@](#): > > It is extremely reactive with most inorganic and organic materials, even plastics, and will initiate the combustion of many non-flammable materials without any ignition source. These reactions are often violent, and in some cases explosive. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/35 "2012-10-03T03:30:17Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Looks like $1/lb. for NaOH vs. $3/lb for KOH, so your idea is a winner. Well, [it’s not eligible for Amazon Prime](http://www.amazon.com/Sodium-Hydroxide-Caustic-Soda-Micropearls/dp/B003TA00EE/ref=sr_1_29?ie=UTF8&qid=1349234671&sr=8-29&keywords=sodium+hydroxide), so forget it. But look at this [way cool sign](http://www.amazon.com/Danger-Sodium-Hydroxide-Sign-14/dp/B0089OQXYG/ref=sr_1_37?ie=UTF8&qid=1349234593&sr=8-37&keywords=sodium+hydroxide) you can put on your bathroom door! ---
**Author:** ![Michael63129](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@Michael63129](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael63129)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/36 "2012-10-03T03:53:08Z")
Until I read about chlorine trifluoride, I never knew that glass could actually ignite (HF can dissolve glass but it doesn’t burn)… Even materials that can withstand it can apparently only do so after treatment. Also, as far as acids and alkalis go, [alkalis often cause worse burns](http://askhowaskwhy.blogspot.com/2007/01/which-is-worse-alkali-eye-burn-or-acid.html) since they can more readily penetrate flesh because they don’t coagulate proteins (some acids like HF can, but HF burns are due more to fluoride toxicity, hence the delayed reaction, as stated in the description [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:HF_burned_hands.jpg); “hydrofluoric acid burns typically do not show visible evidence of injury for a day or two after exposure”). ---
**Author:** ![madrabbitwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c37758/32.png) [@madrabbitwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madrabbitwoman)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/37 "2012-10-03T06:07:40Z")
I was going to use this as an example but I can’t find the actual acid used > **[Snowtown murders](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowtown_murders)** > > The Snowtown murders (also known as the bodies in barrels murders) were a series of murders committed by John Justin Bunting, Robert Joe Wagner and James Spyridon Vlassakis between August 1992 and May 1999, in and around Adelaide, South Australia. A fourth person, Mark Haydon, was convicted for helping to dispose of the bodies. The trial was one of the longest and most publicised in Australian legal history. > Most of the bodies were found in barrels in an abandoned bank vault in Snowtown, Sou... ---
**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/38 "2012-10-03T13:46:43Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Okay chemists, if HF isn’t particularly good at doing away with a corpse, what works best? Chemicals, shemicals. What works best is pigs. [Cite 1](http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/01/14173510-70-year-old-oregon-farmer-eaten-by-his-hogs?lite) [Cite 2](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HAQ3pNHwj4) ---
**Author:** ![Szlater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/39 "2012-10-03T13:54:34Z")
> [@Michael63129](#): > > Also, as far as acids and alkalis go, [alkalis often cause worse burns](http://askhowaskwhy.blogspot.com/2007/01/which-is-worse-alkali-eye-burn-or-acid.html) since they can more readily penetrate flesh because they don’t coagulate proteins (some acids like HF can, but HF burns are due more to fluoride toxicity, hence the delayed reaction, as stated in the description [here](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:HF_burned_hands.jpg); “hydrofluoric acid burns typically do not show visible evidence of injury for a day or two after exposure”). But at least you don’t need to use soap to wash your hands when you spill a base on them! ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2012, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469/40 "2012-10-03T14:12:26Z")
Lovely, I was hoping someone would find that video clip. (Snatch, Cite 2 above.) A fine rollicking movie that was. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/feasibility-of-body-disposal-with-acid-and-plastic-barrel-a-la-breaking-bad-need-answer-fast/636469.md?page=3)