Laboratory Equipment
Definitions and Uses
Beaker
○ Container
with a wide
mouth and lip for pouring.
○ Sizes range from 50 mL
to 1,000mL.
○ Used for mixing, holding,
heating
liquids
and
transferring liquids from
one container to another
○ Are marked on the side
used
(graduated)
to ○ NOT
accurate
indicate the approximate
measurements
volume of their contents
for
Erlenmeyer Flask
○
○
○
○
A flat-bottomed container
that tapers upward to a
straight neck
Useful for stirring contents
by hand and by swirling
They are marked on the
side
(graduated)
to
indicate the approximate
volume of their contents
NOT used for accurate
measurements
Graduated Cylinder
○
Tall narrow container
volume scale
with
a
o
Used to measure liquid volume
o
Size ranges from 10 mL to 100
mL
o
Used for accurate and precise
measurement
Test Tube
○
○
A plain or lipped tube usually of thin glass closed
at one end
Used to hold, mix, or heat small quantities of solid
or liquid chemicals
Test Tube Holder
o Used
for
holding
test
tubes that are
too
hot
to
handle
manually
Test Tube Rack
o
o
o
Used for holding test
tubes
Hold anywhere from 696 tubes
Made from wood, plastic
or metal
Funnel
○
A hollow cone with a tube extending from the smaller
end designed to catch and direct a downward flow
○
Used to channel liquid or fine-grained substances into
containers with a small opening
Pipette
○
A small piece of
apparatus
which
typically consists of a
narrow tube into
which fluid is drawn
by suction
○
Used to transport a
small amount of a
liquid
Tongs
T
○
A device usually of two movable pieces joined at
one end
○
Used for grasping and lifting containers of heatresistant material used in high temperature
chemical reactions
Ring Stand
o A retort stand or clamp
stand
intended
to
support other pieces of
equipment
and
glassware such as
burettes, test tubes
and flasks
o Can be fitted with ring
clamps,
versatile
clamps or 3 prong
clamps
Versatile
Clamp
Ring
Clamp
o It
is a safe and
convenient
way
to
perform reactions that
require heating using a
Bunsen burner
3-prong
clamp
Burette
3-prong Clamp
Burette
o
A graduated glass tube with
a tap at one end
o
Used to dispense and
measure variable amounts
of liquid or sometimes gas
within a chemical and
industrial testing especially
specially for the titration
process and volumetric
analysis
Tap
Thermometer and
Thermometer
Clamp
Thermometer:
o An instrument consisting of
a
narrow,
hermetically
sealed glass tube marked
with graduations and having
a bulb, containing mercury
or alcohol on one end
o Used
to
measure
temperature in ºC
Thermometer clamp:
o A
versatile clamp used
attach a thermometer to a
ring stand
Forceps (Tweezers)
○
A small instrument that is used like pincers in
grasping or pulling something
○
Used for picking up objects too small to be
easily handled
Triple Beam & Digital Balances
○
○
Used
to
measure
mass with a reading
error of 0.05 gram
Mass range between
1g - 610g
○
○
Used to measure
mass more precisely
Mass range is 0.5g 600g
Bunsen Burner
○ A small adjustable
gas
burner
that
produces a single
flame
○
Used for heating,
sterilization
and
combustion
Goggles
○
Protective wear for the facial area surrounding the
eyes
○
Provides protection from impact, dust, liquid
splash, optical radiation and high heat hazards
Wire Brush
o Also called test tube brushes
o Used to clean test tubes and graduated
cylinders
○
A small shallow
dish of thin glass or
plastic with a loose
cover
○
Used for holding a
culture
medium
upon which cells,
bacteria,
and
viruses
can
be
grown
Petri Dish
o A flask that has a
round body, long neck
and a flat bottom
o Designed for uniform
heating,
boiling,
distillation and easy
swirling
Florence Flask
o The
narrow
neck
prevents
splash
exposure
Volumetric Flask
o A pear-shaped flask with a flat bottom
o Is calibrated to contain a precise volume at a
certain temperature
o Used to create molar solutions
Rubber Stoppers
o Used
to
containers to
spillage
contamination
close
avoid
or
o Containers
should
never be heated when
there is a stopper in
place
Spot Plates
o
Also called reaction plate
o
Usually made of plastic or
ceramic
o
Used to perform many smallscale reactions at one time
Glass
Stirring Rod
●
Made from solid glass
about the thickness of a
straw with rounded
edges
●
Used to manually mix
chemical
and
stir
solutions but can also
be used to transfer a
single drop of a solution
Watch Glass
o A circular concave piece of glass
o Used as a surface to evaporate a liquid, hold a
solids while being weighed, heating a small
amount of substance and as a cover for a beaker
Wash Bottle
o A plastic bottle with a
spout that delivers a
wash solution to a
specific area
o Distilled water is the
only liquid that should
be used in a wash
bottle
Weighing Boat
o A container with smooth surface and rounded corners;
usually made from rubberized polystyrene
o Used to weigh small amounts of liquids or solids
o The rounded corners make it easy to remove powder or
granular samples
Flint Striker
o Also called a welding
striker
o Is composed of two arms,
a metal flint and a metal
cap
o Used to ignite the escaping
gas from a Bunsen burner;
since it places the hand a
safe distance away from
the flame
Evaporating Dish
o
o
A heat resistant dish
usually
made
of
borosilicate glass or
porcelain
Used
to
separate
liquids and solids from
a solution by allowing
water to evaporate off
into the air
Crucible
o
A ceramic
with a lid
vessel
o
Used
heat
solid
substances to high
temperatures,
particularly metals, to
dry completely or
induce a reaction
without a solution
Crucible Tongs
o Used for handling hot crucibles and picking up
other hot objects
o Is NOT to be used for picking up beakers
Clay Triangle
o
A wire and ceramic
triangle
o
Used to support
porcelain crucibles
when being heated
over
a
Bunsen
burner
Wire Gauze
o Also called wire mesh is a gauze woven of
metal wire or fine gauze-like netting
o Is placed on a support ring or tripod to support
beakers, flasks or other glassware to protect it
during heating
Triangular File
o
Specialized
tool
with a unique threesided design
o
Used to score glass
tubing or rods to
create clean breaks
in the glass
Gas Collecting Bottle
o Used when large volumes of gases are
produced and must be collected by the
displacement of water
Medicine Dropper
o Used to transfer a small
volume of liquid (less than
one mL)
o On top of each dropper is
a “rubber bulb”
Transfer Pipette
o
Long slender tubes and a molded bulb which can
be gently compressed and relaxed
o
Are disposable and used to transfer small volumes
of a desired liquid
Spatula
o
Tool with one or two
ends with spoon-like
scoops or flattened;
usually
made
of
stainless steel (to
prevent corrosion)
o
Used to mix, spread
and lift chemicals
o
Long
scoop-shaped
spatula
made
of
stainless steel
o
Used to measure small
amounts of a solid or
powder
o
Should
never
be
placed directly into the
reagent bottle since it
can
cause
contamination
Scoopula
Mortar and Pestle
o
o
o
The mortar is a durable bowl
made of stone, ceramic or wood
The pestle is a rounded grinding
club made from the same
material as the mortar
Used to crush solid chemicals
into smaller pieces or to grind
solids into a fine powder to make
it easier to dissolve into solvents
Hot Plate
o
A flat surface with an
internal electric heating
element; does not
produce an open flame
o
Used
to
perform
chemical
reactions,
heat
samples
at
precise temperatures