this questions is more or less purely to satisfy SWIM's curiosity, and is about the acid used to convert plant alkaloids to their respective salts in the initial phase of an acid/base extraction technique. if whatever acid is used is too concentrated, is this likely to damage the alkaloids? also, are certain acids more likely to be problematic in this sense?

SWIM thanks you in advance!


peace

You really don`t need a lot, and the more you add, the more heat will be given off when the lye is added, that is the only drawback.
you can add lots of acid, but I hear that a ph of 4-5 is perfect.

If using citric acid like I do, all you need is 1 tsp in a litre of water, and that is WAY overcompensating