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I never heard of aluminum being toxic to any extent, but a quick search showed this http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/nutrition/cooking-utensils-and-nutriti

I never heard of aluminum being toxic to any extent, but a quick search showed this http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/nutrition/cooking-utensils-and-nutrition/overview.html http://www.nytimes.com/health/guides/nutrition/cooking-utens... > Aluminum cookware is very popular. Nonstick, scratch-resistant anodized aluminum cookware is a good choice. The hard surface is easy to clean. It is sealed so aluminum cannot get into food. > There have been concerns in the past that aluminum cookware increases the risk for Alzheimer's disease. The Alzheimer's Association reports that using aluminum cookware is not a major risk for the disease. > Uncoated aluminum cookware is a greater risk. This type of cookware can easily melt. It can cause burns if it gets too hot. Still, research has shown that the amount of aluminum this cookware leaches into food from is very small. Not sure what "sealed" aluminum is nor what it would be coated with to prevent any kind of leaking. This is all new to me.

yuubi 10y ago
Aluminum exposed to air very quickly grows a thin passive layer of aluminum oxide (unlike steel rust, this layer is stable). Anodizing forces it to grow a thicker layer. Aluminum oxide is hard stuff: 9 on the Mohs hardness scale (talc = 1, diamond = 10). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohs_scale_of_mineral_hardness https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohs_scale_of_mineral_hardness
- sbierwagen 10y ago
  Also note that pure crystalline aluminum oxide is called corundum, or when doped with other elements, the precious gemstones ruby and sapphire, rocks of exceptional hardness and chemical resistance.
  - yuubi 10y ago
    > chemical resistance I remember from a freshman chem lab that trying to dissolve aluminum into acid doesn't work because acid promotes oxide growth, so we dissolved it in NaOH, which was supposed to attack the oxide, then acidified the solution. Are the aluminum oxide minerals similarly susceptible, or do they also resist alkali?

yuubi 10y ago

Aluminum exposed to air very quickly grows a thin passive layer of aluminum oxide (unlike steel rust, this layer is stable). Anodizing forces it to grow a thicker layer. Aluminum oxide is hard stuff: 9 on the Mohs hardness scale (talc = 1, diamond = 10). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohs_scale_of_mineral_hardness https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohs_scale_of_mineral_hardness

sbierwagen 10y ago
Also note that pure crystalline aluminum oxide is called corundum, or when doped with other elements, the precious gemstones ruby and sapphire, rocks of exceptional hardness and chemical resistance.
- yuubi 10y ago
  > chemical resistance I remember from a freshman chem lab that trying to dissolve aluminum into acid doesn't work because acid promotes oxide growth, so we dissolved it in NaOH, which was supposed to attack the oxide, then acidified the solution. Are the aluminum oxide minerals similarly susceptible, or do they also resist alkali?