Know that I feel like a complete dumb ass for doing this. It was one of those moments where you don't realize how stupid you are until the second after it happens.
But anyway, I was in the middle of mixing up a couple solutions at my computer desk. I had gloves on and had just finished putting a few tenths of a mL of 60 mg nicotine solution into some bottles. Then I thought, hey I should probably start keeping this bottle preserved just for safe keeping. I'll just purge the air inside the bottle with butane gas that I use to fuel my torch seeing as it can be used as a packaging gas. That way, the oxygen will be displaced and it will last longer. So I took the cap off the bottle and took my pressurized fuel canister and tilted it upside down, nozzle first, into the nicotine bottle. I made it just so the butane nozzle was below the neck of the bottle. It was really awkward, but I pinched the nozzle and pulled back. Within a split second, the pressurized gas burst out of the canister with a loud "SHHRRUOO!", at which point nearly all of the liquid from the nicotine bottle erupted upward, blowing sticky, toxic liquid all over my desk, computer screen, keyboard and carpet. All I could do was shout "FUCK!". I quickly ran to the bathroom and washed my forearms and changed my shirt, but luckily nothing got in my eyes or on my face.
Needless to say, I'm probably the most half-minded person here right now. Don't be like me.
It's not the end of the world, but cleanup should happen NOW and not later :)
Neutralize with an acidic cleaner (something citrus-based helps amazingly with the smell) -spray, wipe, and repeat, going through LOTS of paper towels!
Make sure to put a mask over your face as no not inhale too deeply, and take a quick break every 5 or so minutes to get outside and breathe some fresh air.
Just be sane and smart and all will be well.
Let us even replace that bottle for ya! Maybe next time you can trust US to do the purge lol :P
Have you felt any of the symptoms of excess nicotine exposure?
eg. light headedness, faintness, shortness of breath, diarrhoea, posting on reddit, forcing a pressurized gas into a toxic substance, etcetera.
why not freeze it if you want to preserve it?
The general idea here is that you remove the air from a hermetically sealed container and replace it with an inert gas, removing the oxygen that is normally present in air. This will limit the oxidation that occurs while the liquid is in storage. Freezing something tends to have unwanted side effects and in this case will not have as much of an effect on spoilage.
Also, nicotine itself freezes at -79°C, less than PG (-59°) or VG (18°C) - I don't know this but it seems like freezing a nicotine base might cause the nicotine to come out of solution.
Holy crap! Well, I'll refrain from making a joke at your expense (mainly because I can't come up with anything clever right now ;) .) Glad you're okay though.
And just for future reference, there's a product made specifically for doing this at home. Also, it's not explosive.
Uh, what happened? Did the pressure spread it everywhere, or did it actually explode?
I don't think it literally exploded. More like a nic base toxic bukkake situation.
EDIT: Will someone please name their band "Toxic Bukkake"? Take the phrase as a gift ;) .
This is a fantastic idea. I might have to make a tribute juice.