An Important Property Of Chemistry Lab Glassware

Chemistry lab glassware is quite different from glassware that you commonly use in your house

. Glassware used in a chemistry lab is required to maintain structural integrity under much more stringent conditions than glass that would be use for something like drinking water. Chemistry lab glassware is required to endure temperatures that are very hot because it is used in the facilitation of reactions, digestions and concentrations commonly performed in a laboratory setting.

The rugged and robust nature of glassware used in a chemistry lab is a function of it chemical makeup. Chemistry lab glassware is made from borosilicate glass. Regular glass is composed of simple silicon dioxide but when regular silicon dioxide is given boron oxide as an additive while it is melted, the result is a glass that is capable of withstanding very high temperatures. How is this possible?

Thermal Shock. Thermal shock is a condition that affects glass where different sections of glass on a glass vessel are heated to different temperatures. As in the case of all non-organic materials, glass expands when it is heated. If the temperature difference between different areas of glass is too great, expansion rates may vary too much. This results in static stress on the structure of the glass vessel which in turn leads to cracking. In a chemistry lab, glassware is intentionally exposed to extremely high temperatures during use so as to facilitate reactions, digestions and concentrations. In many cases this is the result of heating by a direct flame.

Borosilicate Glass. The secret is in the addition of boron oxide to the silicon dioxide in the correct amount. Borosilicate glass is usually composed of about 70% silica, 10% boron oxide, 8% sodium oxide, 8% potassium oxide, and 1% calcium oxide. This combination of structural components results in a temperature resistant glass matrix that has a very low coefficient of thermal expansion. For this reason, there will be much lower variation with respect to themal expansion between areas of the glass with differing temperatures.

by: Mark T He

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