Chemistry in the news

See this article:

A POISONOUS plume of acid ”comparable to car batteries”

Huh? This does not make sense. Acid is not comparable to a battery. Although I think I know what he means …

”It is extremely acidic, comparable to car batteries,” said a senior research fellow, William Glamore, from the University of NSW.

… ah, that makes sense. As suspected, we are dealing with sulphuric acid, which is what is commonly used in car batteries.

Still, the pH is comparable to lemon juice, not conc sulphuric (but in a biological system, pH 2 is still a bad, bad thing)

Tests carried out by the university’s water research laboratory show alarming amounts of acid, with a pH level of two – compared with a normal level of seven – meaning the Manning River water is roughly as acidic as lemon juice.