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On safe GHB manufacture

Mitsch

Greenlighter
Joined
Nov 11, 2014
Messages
5
Hello,
Since I couldn't find one, I'd like to start a tread on health questions related to GHB manufacture.
The basic process is dead easy : perform an equimolar reaction between NaOH and GBL and you get NaGHB.
Unfortunately, if the man in the street is to perform this reaction, he must pass through a series of intermediate steps, each with its health considerations.
I laid out this post as a summary of the subject, leaving in blue what I don't know and wish to know.

GBL
- GBL dissolves plastics, store it in a glass or HDPE plastic container.
- In Europe, GBL is still legal to possess in many countries and to sell without restriction in Poland.
- There are supposedly 2 kinds of GBL : the german (produced following stricter rules) and the chinese (much more impure). BASF if well-known for producing high-standard GBL.
- There are many scams and a legal-looking document such as the safety data sheet or the certificate of analysis could be a fake.
- What are byproducts that one can expect to find in low-quality GBL ?
- How can GBL purity/safety be assessed ?
- Is there a safe enough procedure to purify GBL ? (like acetone wash for cocaine)

NaOH
- Is a strong base that can cause chemical burns, wear appropriate protections when you handle it.
- Can be found in hardware stores, but it this case it is primordial to know what exactly it contains
- Drain cleaner coming in the form of white pellets can contain NaOH and/or KOH. It can be found in a packaging that state "sodium hydroxyde" on the front side but doesn't display a list of ingredients. I have no idea how much confidence can be put in such a product.
- Hopefully, it can be found pure without the need for a chemist license.

The reaction itself
- Dissolving NaOH in water produces heat. The reaction between NaOH and GBL also produces heat. So you need to do it slowly and watch out for the solution's temperature. You don't want the glass to break or the solution to start boiling (possibly even "explode" if heat is not evenly distributed and it starts boiling in a point)
- NaOH reacts with aluminum. So use a pyrex or stainless steel recipient and ideally a glass rod to stir.

GHB
- Obviously, and just as GBL, it's not a toy and needs to be handled with prudence. Use (blue) food coloring and store in a locked shelf/drawer.
- Properly manufactured GHB should precipitate as a white solid when water evaporates from the solution (but this step is only for purists and people who like to make a sticky mess).
- From what I know, it is stable and can be stored in a plastic bottle for just as long as you want. (but as always, the less heat and light the better)
- How to test purity / refine it ?


That's all I know.
Now, I'd be glad to get some well-informed contributions in order to complete this document which I hope could be completed and get some visibility among the harm-reduction literature.
 
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What exactly are they and how can you make sure they're authentic and reliable ?
- What are byproducts that one can expect to find in low-quality GBL ?
- How can GBL purity/safety be assessed ?

Unless you have access to a HPLC or GC (gold standard of purity testing for volatiles), you are restricted to the "old school" chemistry tests like boiling point, melting point, titrations, refractive index, color change tests and the like. A "real" chemist would run the GBL on a gas chromaptgraph and see what the % peak area came out to.

You cannot reliably trust a piece of paper that says "XXX% purity" because anyone can write whatever down on paper, the actual product itself is what you're concerned with, so that's what you should test.

Impurities will be variable depending on route of production and what ever people have mixed in as a cutting agent......

- (Not certain of this one) The reaction produces chlorine and/or other irritant gases, so it should be performed in a ventilated area.
- GHB corrodes aluminium (and other metals ?), so if prepared in a metallic cooking pot, the resulting product will contain harmful impurities.

NaOH should never produce chorine gas when you dissolve it, if you're making chlorine gas you have a serious fuck up.
And GHB does not corrode aluminum. Sodium hydroxide does, especially as a solution. It's a well known fact. NaOH + aluminum --> sodium aluminate and hydrogen gas.

- How to test purity / refine it ?

HPLC or acid titration for purity testing, maybe NMR, and recrystallization from hot water (please look up in Vogel how to do this).
 
Thanks,
I edited the post and will later delve into the various techniques you mentioned. Recrystallization looks like an interesting and accessible lead.
It's in these times I regret having learnt computer science instead of chemistry, but I guess the grass is always greener on the other side.
 
Unless you have access to a HPLC or GC (gold standard of purity testing for volatiles), you are restricted to the "old school" chemistry tests like boiling point, melting point, titrations, refractive index, color change tests and the like. A "real" chemist would run the GBL on a gas chromaptgraph and see what the % peak area came out to.

You cannot reliably trust a piece of paper that says "XXX% purity" because anyone can write whatever down on paper, the actual product itself is what you're concerned with, so that's what you should test.

Impurities will be variable depending on route of production and what ever people have mixed in as a cutting agent......



NaOH should never produce chorine gas when you dissolve it, if you're making chlorine gas you have a serious fuck up.
And GHB does not corrode aluminum. Sodium hydroxide does, especially as a solution. It's a well known fact. NaOH + aluminum --> sodium aluminate and hydrogen gas.



HPLC or acid titration for purity testing, maybe NMR, and recrystallization from hot water (please look up in Vogel how to do this).


Good and informative post. I've been taking GHB for the past year and daily for 2 months now so I know a lot about quality and variance. I've also experimented with Xyrem which is Pharmaceutical GHB so I have a good reference for comparison in regards to potency and dosing protocols. 1mll of Xyrem is equivalent to 0.5grams and it's very similar to the stuff I acquire off the street. First and foremost, GBL should NEVER be consumed without the conversion to NaGHB. I've never witnessed the conversion, nor done extensive research regarding it but I know that it requires food grade Lye (Sodium nitrate) which is used in baked goods and easily available online and highly pure GBL, which is VERY illegal to import. A big thing with the finished product is you want to make sure to test the PH levels and see a result over 7.
 
Mitsch. I think that you are forgetting that you also need to check the PH of the GHB with some indicator paper. Or maybe it´s not neccesary?
 
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