Lab Apparatus

Question 1

Safety Goggles

Answer 1

-Required in all labs
-Prevents eye irritation and blindness
-Protects your eyes when using devices/chemicals that could harm your eyes

Question 2

Gloves

Answer 2

-Protects hands when conducting dissections or chemical experiments with corrosive chemicals

Question 3

Beaker

Answer 3

-Used to hold, heat, stir, and mix chemicals
-Most beakers have spouts to help with pouring
-Has markings that can be used to measure volumes, but it is not a precise way to measure liquids
-No “beaker lid” but watch glasses can be used to prevent contamination/spilling

Question 4

Erlenmeyer Flask

Answer 4

-aka Conical Flasks
-Narrow neck and expands towards its base

-Its structure allows for easy mixing and swirling of the flask without too much risk of spilling
-Narrow neck also allows the use of a rubber/glass stopper
-Bottom is wider than the top, so it will heat quicker because of greater SA exposed to heat
-Can be easily clamped to a ring stand as well as heated or shaken mechanically
-Should not be heated when capped

Question 5

Florence Flask

Answer 5

-aka Boiling Flasks

-Round bottom and a long neck

-Used to hold liquids and can be easily swirled and heated
-Heats substances evenly
-Bulbed bottom allows heat to distribute through the liquid more evenly
-Can be capped by rubber/glass stoppers
-Should not be heated when capped

Question 6

Test Tubes

Answer 6

-Used to hold and organize small amounts of liquids
-Primarily used for qualitative assessment and comparison (when a larger number of samples need to be tested and compared)
-Can be capped with a rubber/glass stopper
-Never heat a capped test tube
-Stored in a test tube rack and can be moved using test-tube tongs if too hot

Question 7

Watch Glasses

Answer 7

-A round piece of glass that is slightly concave/convex
-Can hold a small amount of liquid or solid when being weighed or transported
-Can be used for evaporation purposes or a lid for a beaker

Question 8

Crucible

Answer 8

-Small clay cup (comes with a lid) that can withstand extreme temperatures
-Used for heating substances to very high temperatures

Question 9

Funnel

Answer 9

-Targets liquids into any container so they will not be lost or spilled
-Can be made of glass or plastic, long or short

Question 10

Graduated Cylinder

Answer 10

-Primary measuring tool for the volume of a liquid
-Has several markings up and down the length of the container with specific increments
-The smaller the diameter, the more specific the volume measurements will be
-Read the bottom of the meniscus for more accurate measure

Question 11

Volumetric Flask

Answer 11

-Round flask with a long neck and flat bottom

-Used to measure an exact volume of liquid
-Small line on the neck that indicates how far to fill the bottle
-They come with special caps that will not let anything in or out

-Temperature affects volume. Avoid using liquids that will fluctuate in temperature (hot water that will cool)

Question 12

Dropper

Answer 12

-Sucks up liquid and can then be squeezed out in small drops
-Applies stains to slides, adds indicator to a solution about to be titrated, or small amounts of solutions to objects

Question 13

Pipette

Answer 13

-Used for measuring an exact volume of liquid and placing it into another container

Question 14

Buret

Answer 14

-Usually attached with a clamp to a ring stand

-Right above the bottom opening is a stopcock that can be turned to control the amount of liquid being released (can be slowed down to a drop every few seconds)
-Used for extremely accurate addition of liquid (one of the most accurate tools in the lab)

Question 15

Retort Stands, Rings, and Clamps

Answer 15

-Ring stands are used to suspend burets, beakers, flasks, crucibles, etc. above other containers or a heat source

-Wire gauze and a ring can be used as a base to support the beaker/substance to be heated

-A clay triangle with an open centre is used to suspend crucibles

Question 16

Tongs and Forceps

Answer 16

-Used for grabbing things that should not be touched by hand (when things are heated)

-Types of tongs: beaker, crucible, test tube, utility

-Forceps are used to grab small things like solid chemicals that are broken into chunks so they can be safely handled and added to containers

Question 17

Spatula and Scoopula

Answer 17

-Used to scoop solid chemicals
-Typically used to scoop a chemical out of its original container and onto a weigh boat so that it can be weighed on a balance

Question 18

Thermometer

Answer 18

-Measures temperature
-Can be made of glass, or different metals

Question 19

Bunsen Burner

Answer 19

-Mechanical apparatus connected to a flammable gas source
-There is a knob to adjust the amount of gas flow and a rotating collar that controls air flow
-The burner is lit with a striker

Question 20

Balance

Answer 20

-Used to weigh chemicals
-Chemicals are placed in a container and never directly on the balance
-Never move a balance because it is calibrated for the exact position they are in
-Some of them have plastic housing to keep air currents from affecting measurement

Question 21

Test Tube Rack

Answer 21

-Used to store and organize various test tubes

Question 22

Mortar and Pestle

Answer 22

-Used to crush solids into powders for experiments, usually to better dissolve the solids

Question 23

Wash Bottles

Answer 23

-Squeeze bottle with a nozzle, used to rinse equipment

Question 24

Graham Condenser

Answer 24

-Cools down hot gases into liquid form

Question 25

Petri Dish

Answer 25

-A shallow glass/plastic cylindrical lidded dish used to culture cells

Question 26

Evaporating Dish

Answer 26

-Used to heat and evaporate liquids (leaves a solid residue)

Question 27

Test Tube Brush

Answer 27

-Used to clean test tubes

Question 28

Beaker Brush

Answer 28

-Cleans beakers