What is the best way to store Nembutal powder? I won’t be using it for awhile.
The soluble barbiturate salts (ie. sodium pentobarbital – Nembutal) are very stable drugs. This is a particularly useful property of Nembutal, as it means the drug can be safely stored many years without losing its potency. This is true for both powdered and liquid forms of Nembutal.
In powdered form, sodium pentobarbital should be kept tightly-sealed, away from any contamination or exposure to oxygen or atmospheric moisture. The product from China is usually supplied loosely packed in a small plastic sachet, so repackaging is important. There are two recommended procedures for long term storage.
The Storage of Powder Nembutal
Method I
Obtain a suitable glass container with a airtight screw top. The size should just accommodate the powder, with little extra space for air. If testing is planned, remove ~500mg, then tightly seal the container before wrapping it in aluminium foil (to protect it from the light) and store it in a cool place. The refrigerator (~4°C is fine).
Method 2 (Courtesy of Alan Davies)
An alternative strategy is to wrap the sample (minus 500mg if testing is planned) in aluminium foil, and place the package in a metallized Mylar (PET) bag. The bag is then vacuum sealed using a home vacuum food storage unit (eg. a Foodsaver vacuum sealer ) sold at stores such as Amazon, Argos or Walmart.
Pint size Mylar bags (10cm x16cm or 4″x6″) are ideal and provide ideal oxygen and moisture protection for the sample.
The sealed Mylar bag is itself then vacuum packed inside a standard polyethylene food serve bag (Quart size,~20cm x 30cm or 8″x 12″), along with moisture (silica gel) and oxygen absorbing sachets. The finished sample is small and can then be conveniently stored in a cool place (< 20°C).
It will be obvious if the seal is broken as the package will become pliable, at which point the outer vacuum package can be replaced.