Hello friends, I really need some help with certain ingredients that I have hard time locating.
I've done some experiments with Anadenanthera peregrina seeds (yopo) using NaHCO (baking soda) as a base but my results were uncertain. I definitely got something out of it but with the dose I've done the effect should have been on whole different level.
Now I have read that it is recommended to use CaOH specifically edible (pickling) lime. I simply wasn't able to locate this stuff in my country. I understand the concept, lime with no impurities that is used to make pickles but it just doesn't exist here. I tried various eshops I went into brick stores but no luck. All I was able to find was garden lime that is used to cover tree bark or is mixed into manure to alter the pH. Would this stuff be ok to use as a base or is pickling lime really necessary?

Another thing that seems to not exist or is not accessible for purchase to pleb like me is fumarate acid. I have found this acid to be required in number of tekks and this is simply non existent when I google search in my language. Just a couple of science papers where fumarate acid was used.

I'm not asking for direct sources but I'd really appreciate some advice as to if there are any substitutes to be used or maybe point me in the right direction where to look.

Any help is much appreciated!

Safe travels

without giving away too much...

CaOH - aquarium suppliers
Fumaric Acid - speciality food stores

Calcium hydroxide can be made by mixing a soluble calcium salt with sodium hydroxide, all in solution of course. Calcium hydroxide made in this manner will be somewhat difficult to separate from any excess of sodium hydroxide, however.

Another option is roasting calcium carbonate at 1100°C or greater. This produces calcium oxide, to which you can cautiously add water to make the hydroxide.


What language? Fumaric acid is a trivial name for E-butenedioic acid and as such may have an entirely different name in your language.

Related example: Succinic acid is the trivial name for butanedioic acid (yes, butane-, not butene-), which in German is known as "Bernsteinsäure" (translating literally as "amber acid" - although fumaric acid is simply "Fumarsäure".

Fumaric acid can be obtained from natural sources - particularly Fumaria officinalis, which contains (relatively) large amounts of this substance.

Thanks a lot to both of you.



You misunderstood me. The fumaric acid problem is not a problem of translation the name is very similar in my language but I just can't seem to locate any local source that sells it.

About the CaOH... well I'm not really sure I'm comfortable enough with my skills to make my own not even talking about the fact that I have no way to produce 1100°C. So the gardening lime is a definite no-go since it can have some impurities?

It's difficult to help you with finding local source if we don't know where you live (country).

Fumaric acid can be purchased on eBay from EU, UK, US and China. Where do you live so you can't get it. Zimbabwe? Just joking...

The calcium hydroxide can be purified by dissolving in hot water (can be boiling), then cooling and filtering. This will remove water-soluble impurities (look up the solubility table to find how much CaOH will dissolve in water at different temperatures). The insoluble impurities are of least concern to you since you will probably filter and extract your material anyway.

If you can get pure calcium oxide (caustic lime), you can carefully dissolve this in water and follow the above procedure.

The best way to get ultra pure lime is to obtain pure calcium carbonate (can be obtain in food grade quality from e.g. stores for homemade cosmetics) and bake it in a kiln. 1000 °C for 1 hour is enough. The resulting calcium oxide is then made into hydroxide as written above. If you have a friend interested in pottery, he/she might have access to such kiln. Many have even temperature-time control, electric ones are able to achieve such temperatures.

I got my lime from aquarium store as pH adjuster (so called Kalkwasser). It is of good purity. Some store-bought chemicals are of very good to excellent purity. It won't contain nasty stuff like lead or mercury since they don't want to kill your fish