{"id":664,"date":"2026-11-03T19:35:56","date_gmt":"2026-11-03T11:35:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/?p=664"},"modified":"2026-11-03T19:35:56","modified_gmt":"2026-11-03T11:35:56","slug":"how-to-make-thiourea-solution-4066-c66efe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/2026\/11\/03\/how-to-make-thiourea-solution-4066-c66efe\/","title":{"rendered":"How to make thiourea solution?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey everyone, it\u2019s Jake from the thiourea supply team\u2014you know, the guy who gets a million DMs a week asking \u201cWait, how do I actually make a solid thiourea solution without messing it up?\u201d Look, I get it. When you\u2019re working with thiourea\u2014whether you\u2019re using it for metal plating, photography, or even those weird little organic synthesis projects your lab\u2019s been tinkering with\u2014sometimes buying pre-mixed solution isn\u2019t ideal. Maybe you need a specific concentration, or you\u2019re in a pinch and can\u2019t wait for shipping. That\u2019s why I\u2019m breaking this down like we\u2019re chatting in a warehouse break room, not a college chem lecture hall. No stuffy jargon, no confusing steps\u2014just real, tested tips from someone who\u2019s shipped this stuff out to hundreds of small manufacturers and hobbyists over the last 7 years. Thiourea<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

First off, let\u2019s get one basic rule out of the way right now: thiourea dissolves in water, but it\u2019s not like dumping table salt. If you toss a big pile of solid thiourea into a bucket and walk away, you\u2019ll end up with a lumpy, concentrated mess at the bottom that never fully mixes. I see that mistake all the time\u2014newbies think \u201cit\u2019s soluble, right?\u201d so they skip the stirring part, and then they\u2019re calling us panicking because their plating line\u2019s clogged with undissolved crystals. Don\u2019t be that person.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with what you actually need to make this solution. I\u2019m not gonna list lab-grade glassware unless that\u2019s what you\u2019re using\u2014most folks I work with use 5-gallon food-grade buckets, magnetic stirrers (or even a big old stir stick if you\u2019re on a budget), and a digital scale (way better than guessing with cups, trust me). Also, make sure your water is room temp or slightly warm\u2014hot water will speed up dissolving, but boiling water can actually make thiourea break down a little, so skip the kettle. And obviously, you need solid thiourea crystals (let\u2019s call it TU for short, \u2018cause we all do) \u2014 I only sell high-purity prills, no dusty old granules that have caked up in a dusty warehouse.<\/p>\n

Now, the concentration part. This is where people get confused. The most common solutions people ask for are 10%, 20%, and 50% by weight. Let\u2019s do an example so it makes sense. If you want a 10% thiourea solution, that means 10 grams of TU for every 90 grams of water, right? Wait no\u2014wait, 10% of the total solution is TU, so yeah, 10g TU + 90g H2O = 100g of 10% solution. Easy. Let\u2019s say you need 5 gallons of that. A gallon of water weighs roughly 8.34 lbs, so 5 gallons is ~41.7 lbs, which is ~18927 grams. So 10% of 18927g is ~1893g of TU, and the rest is water. Got it? If you need a different concentration, just do the math: (desired % \/ 100) x total weight of solution = grams of TU needed. No need to overcomplicate it.<\/p>\n

Now the actual mixing step, the part that everyone messes up. Step 1: Pour most of your water into your bucket first\u2014leave like 10% of the water in the jug for rinsing out the TU bag later, waste not want not. Step 2: Start stirring that water slow\u2014don\u2019t crank the stirrer up to full speed right away, you\u2019ll get a foamy mess all over the garage. Step 3: Add the TU slowly, a little at a time. Like, don\u2019t dump half the bag in. Toss in a cup of prills, let them stir for 2 minutes until they\u2019re fully dissolved, then add another cup. This is key because if you add too much at once, the water can\u2019t hold all the TU, and you get that sludge at the bottom. I learned this the hard way when a client tried making a 40% solution in 30 seconds and ruined their entire 55-gallon drum. Oops.<\/p>\n

Wait, what about dissolving in different temperatures? I mentioned earlier\u2014room temp (68-77\u00b0F, or 20-25\u00b0C) works fine, but if you need it to mix faster, you can warm the water up to 100\u00b0F (38\u00b0C) max. Any hotter, and thiourea starts to decompose, giving off a weird ammonia smell, which is not something you want near your work area. And never use metal containers? Wait, no\u2014actually, thiourea reacts with some metals, like copper or iron. If you\u2019re storing the solution for more than a week, use plastic or glass containers, not metal buckets. That\u2019s another mistake I see\u2014someone uses a galvanized metal bucket to mix, and the solution turns cloudy in 2 days. Fix that, keep it in plastic.<\/p>\n

Now, safety stuff, \u2018cause I don\u2019t wanna get anyone hurt. Thiourea isn\u2019t super toxic, but it\u2019s not candy. Wear gloves when you\u2019re handling the solid prills, \u2018cause if you get a bunch on your hands and don\u2019t wash it off, it can irritate your skin. And don\u2019t inhale the dust\u2014when you\u2019re pouring solid TU into the bucket, use a funnel if you can, or wear a dust mask. Inhaling that stuff all day isn\u2019t great for your lungs. If you get it in your eyes, flush with water for 15 minutes, easy enough. No need for a hazmat suit, just common sense.<\/p>\n

Wait, what if you need a solution that\u2019s more concentrated than 50%? I get that question sometimes. Thiuera\u2019s solubility in water is about 108g per 100mL of water at 77\u00b0F, so max you can make is around 52% by weight at room temp. If you need stronger, you have to warm the water up\u2014at 140\u00b0F, it\u2019s like 140g per 100mL, so you can get up to a 58% solution. But then when it cools down, some TU will precipitate out, right? So if you need a super concentrated solution that stays liquid, you gotta keep it warm, or add a little bit of another solvent like ethanol. But most of my customers don\u2019t need that\u2014they\u2019re sticking to 10-30% for plating or cleaning, so that\u2019s what I stock.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s do a quick quick example for the folks who don\u2019t wanna do math. Say you need a 20% solution, 1 gallon total. 1 gallon is ~3785 grams. 20% of that is 757 grams of TU, so add 757g TU to 3028g water, stir slow, add TU gradually. Done. That\u2019s it. No fancy lab equipment needed.<\/p>\n

Now, what about storage? Once you make your solution, how long does it last? If you keep it sealed in a dark, cool place, it\u2019ll stay good for 3-4 weeks. If it\u2019s warm and exposed to sunlight, it\u2019ll start to go bad in a week\u2014turn cloudy, get that ammonia smell. So don\u2019t leave it sitting on a workbench in the sun. And if you see crystals forming at the bottom when it\u2019s cold, that\u2019s just precipitated TU\u2014warm it up a little, stir, and it\u2019ll go back to normal, no problem.<\/p>\n

Look, I\u2019ve been doing this for long enough that I know half the people reading this are gonna skip a step and mess it up, and that\u2019s fine. That\u2019s why we have pre-made solutions ready to ship same-day, in whatever concentration you need, no mixing, no guesswork. But if you do wanna make your own, just remember: add TU slow, stir steady, don\u2019t use hot water, and keep it in plastic.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re tired of wasting solid TU on bad mixes, or you need a consistent solution for your next project, hit us up. We can hook you up with high-purity solid thiourea, or pre-mixed solutions in any concentration, for whatever use you\u2019ve got\u2014plating, photography, water treatment, whatever. No weird minimum orders, no hidden fees, just good product and honest advice.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Now, before I go, a quick pro tip: if you\u2019re making a solution for metal plating, add a tiny bit of citric acid (like 0.5% by weight) to it. It keeps the solution from getting contaminated with metal ions, which makes the plating finish way smoother. I learned that from a regular customer who\u2019s been in the plating business for 20 years\u2014works like a charm.<\/p>\n

Happy mixing, and if you got questions, just reach out. We\u2019re here to help.<\/h2>\n

Sodium Percarbonate<\/a> References:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 97th Edition, Thiourea Solubility Data<\/li>\n
  2. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Chemical Safety Guidelines for Thiourea Handling<\/li>\n
  3. plating Resources Association, Guide to Plating Chemical Solution Preparation<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n

    Tianjin JOY Co., Ltd.<\/a>
    Tianjin JOY Co., Ltd. is one of the most professional thiourea manufacturers and suppliers in China, specialized in providing high quality sodium sulphide and sodium hydrosulfide. We warmly welcome you to buy thiourea made in China here from our factory.
    Address: Room 406, Chuangzhi Building 482, DongmanZhong Road, Eco-City, Tianjin, China
    E-mail: postmaster@rstchem.com
    WebSite:     https:\/\/www.ruisterchem.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Hey everyone, it\u2019s Jake from the thiourea supply team\u2014you know, the guy who gets a million … How to make thiourea solution?<\/span>Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":664,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[627],"class_list":["post-664","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry","tag-thiourea-476d-c6ab5e"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/85"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=664"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=664"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=664"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.americansandblastingfl.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=664"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}