Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Solvent storage - metal bottles

monolithic - 8-10-2023 at 08:17

I'm looking for 150-250 ml metal storage containers with a tightly threaded lid, capable of holding relatively low boiling point solvents like DCM, acetone, nitromethane, etc. Anyone know of where I could buy a half dozen or so of these without paying an arm and a leg? I looked at United States Plastic Corp website and they want $10-15 per container for something like this: https://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=91733&... They do have "rubber cement" style metal cans for cheap but I'm not sure if the threading is good enough to prevent something like DCM from evaporating away.

fx-991ex - 8-10-2023 at 08:54

Why not brown glass bottle? i got a pack of 12*500ml for something like 20$ on amazon or vivaplex.com
I use teflon/PTFE sheet to make gasket for sealing the cap as it resist almost every chemical.

Plastic are pretty strong nowadays, i dont see problem with plastic threaded cap.
The galon of acetone i bought at the store years ago came in a plastic bottle.

monolithic - 8-10-2023 at 09:08

Quote: Originally posted by fx-991ex  
Why not brown glass bottle? i got a pack of 12*500ml for something like 20$ on amazon or vivaplex.com
I use teflon/PTFE sheet to make gasket for sealing the cap as it resist almost every chemical.

Plastic are pretty strong nowadays, i dont see problem with plastic threaded cap.
The galon of acetone i bought at the store years ago came in a plastic bottle.


I'm using glass now. I'll be moving shortly, and will have to store my solvents outside. I'm a bit paranoid about breaking glass bottles during the move or summertime temperatures exploding the bottles.

Sulaiman - 8-10-2023 at 09:46

The thread is almost irrelevant,
Its the cap seal that is critical.

Texium - 8-10-2023 at 11:26

A few years ago I transported all of my chemicals, along with the rest of my belongings, over 1000 miles in the midst of a scorching hot summer. Not a single thing broke. I packed all the glass bottles between plastic bottles, or bubble wrapped them if necessary. Things I was particularly concerned about I packed extra carefully and kept inside the car with me to protect them from the brunt of the heat, and I kept the most sensitive things in a cooler with ice. I don’t think you need to worry.

BromicAcid - 8-10-2023 at 13:16

Diethyl ether is the main solvent that I routinely see in metal bottles. They work well if you can find them. As for packing, I also packed up had moved my lab once, I did it by putting the items into totes and pouring vermiculite around all the items, nothing moved, nothing broke.

Tsjerk - 9-10-2023 at 03:33

I moved my chemicals and glass a couple of times, and I used a lot of newspaper. Nothing broke, I just made sure I was the one who moved the boxes containing the items and not helping friends or hired movers to make sure the boxes were handled with care.

charley1957 - 9-10-2023 at 05:20

I have seen aluminum beer bottles lately. They likely have an internal plastic coating, and they have stout threads and a good seal.

dettoo456 - 9-10-2023 at 10:47

@monolithic This place (https://airseacontainers.com/packaging/packaging-bottles-can...) seems to have them for reasonable prices but I’ve never bought from them before so I can’t vouch for their quality or anything else about them.

Dr.Bob - 9-10-2023 at 16:22

I have some 120 ml qorpak glass bottles, amber (used once for solvent, some have label residue on them) and clear (new) for $2, with PTFE lined green caps, and if you really want security, I have new, plastic coated bottles for $3 each. These are used by many companies for harsh chemicals and solvents, I have received TFA, bromine methyl iodide, and chloroform in them. They are much better than metal for most chemicals.