chemistry experiment mishap! someone help!?

Question

ok, so i was working in the chem lab today and i came out and my hands have these grayish smudges/spots on them! they're very noticeable. and near the edge, there is a darker reddish brown small dot.
We were working with silver nitrate and nitric acid. DOes anyone know a way to get either of those off? and does nitric acid EVER come off?
PLEASE HELP!!!!!

Answer 1

Cant be dont, kiss your butt goodbye.

Answer 2

The grayish smudges are actually silver embedded in the skin.
The yellow/red spots are the nitric acid reacting with the protein of the skin. Not to worry...they will wear away as the skin sloughs off. Takes about a week. Quite harmless, though. Wear gloves next time.

Answer 3

This is metallic silver. In the past, experiments using silver nitrate were done in chemistry lab classes to evaluate the technique of the students: the more brown on the hands, the poorer the technique. I won't comment on your technique except to say you should have been wearing gloves. If you had a lot of nitric acid on you, you would be in some pain, and you haven't said that. If you're still worried about acid, wash your hands in bicarb solution.

The brown should go away in a few days.

Answer 4

Well,
I am a chemist, I hate to say, it will never come out, it wears out. Its a pain in the but to get on ya, I remember in college to the professor made us use it to make sure that we used gloves, if we didn't do something right, it got on us and they would notice if we used the right protective wear. Silver Nitrate will do this to your hands for sure, or skin for that matter. There is no way to get it out, it just wears off with the skin dying off. Nitric acid comes off in washing your hands or skin since its a strong acid, the silver nitrate I regret to say won't come out. Hope this helps. By the way, it is VERY poisonous if ingested, skin contact won't make you sick.

Sincerely,
Wee Man.

Answer 5

It's the silver nitrate that's stained your hands. actually the black dots are in fact silver deposits. There's not much you can do now that the stain is there on your hands. You'll just have to wait a few days for your skin cells to shed off -- probably a couple of days. Just like when you get pen marks on your skin.

Answer 6

Nitric acid will usually stain skin a yellow color. It will simply go away with time, but I know of no way to remove it. I have had many such stains with no bad effects.

Answer 7

Skin Contact:
Corrosive. Symptoms of redness, pain, and severe burn can occur

Nuetralize the acid with baking soda.
May be fatal if swallowed or inhaled. Extremely corrosive. Contact with skin or eyes may cause severe burns and permanent damage. TLV 2 ppm. OES long-term 5 mg/m3

Answer 8

between the least confusing and optimal look after i'm waiting to think of of of is vinegar and baking soda. Sodium bicarbonate NaHCO3 will react with the acetic acid CH3COOH to from carbonic acid H2CO3 which in the present day breaks down into carbon dioxide CO2 and water H2O leaving a dilute answer of sodium acetate CH3COONa.

Answer 9

Hey
This happened with me too. But I thought it looked cool. Anyways there is nothing really that you can do except for washing your hands again and again but it will come off after two or three days.

Answer 10

yeah, it will come off eventually. IT was probably one of your indicators. Your skin continually replenishes itself and shedding old skin in the processs. You will look a little funny in the proces but not to worry it will subside.