Bleach bath for treating colour photographic Ag halide (AgX) materials contains (a) a Fe(III) salt, (b) a chloride, (c) a persulphate, (d) a nitrate and (e) a hydroxy cpd and/or an amino cpd. The bath is free from bromide. It may also contain a chelating agent or a hydroxy cpd also having a chelating function. The pref amts are 0.005-0.2 mole/1 Fe(III) ions, 0.05-1 mole/1 chloride, 0.01-0.5 mole/1 persulphate, 0.05-1.5 mole/1 nitrate, 0.001-0.5 mole/1 hydroxy or amino cpd and 0-0.6 mol/1 chelating agent. cpd (e) pref is glycerol, (di)ethylene glycol, glucose, fructose, sorbitose, tartaric acid, citric acid, salicyclic acid, ethylene diamine, propylene diamine and/or hexamethylene diamine. USE/ADVANTAGE - The bleach bath is esp environmentally friendly, since the components are readily biodegradable. It is esp suitable for bleaching AgX materials with a reflective base.
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