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JJay
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After distilling some water, I noticed that my favorite 3L flask is developing some nasty scratches, some of which are in an ugly pattern that looks
like star cracking. I'm not ready to throw the flask away yet, but I'd be a little concerned to put it under vacuum or use it at high temperatures.
Looks like I will need to pick up a new flask pretty soon... I wonder if I should get one with four necks. I could use an overhead stirrer, reflux
condenser, addition funnel and thermometer simultaneously that way, but I find that I rarely require such a complex apparatus, and I could probably
get away with using a Claisen adapter on one neck....
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Db33
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First time ive had glassware delivered broken. I think from now on im going to try much harder to find galssware already in the USA instead of having
it ordered from China. Because not only does it take about a month, but you could get something like this, which totally bummed me out today when it
came. I was really lookin forward to my first pressurized funnel. And now its here and its shit.
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Chemetix
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I hate to say it, but that's why chinese glass is cheap. I see teaching labs complain about the scratching and star cracks in glassware that otherwise
gets nearly 20 years of use.
I find it hard to do repairs because there is a difference in the borosilicate batches that china uses compared to the material from European and
American suppliers.
That said there are also differences between modern batches and old stocks of glass that I've had difficulty using; and old, I mean older than 40
years.
Support your local glass blower, the difference in price is buying you a reliable service.
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JJay
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Some Chinese glass is good; some isn't. I have literally knocked pricechopper2011's flasks from a tabletop onto concrete without damage. I have seen
American glass implode under vacuum and crack spontaneously for no apparent reason... there are many factors that affect quality....
When I ordered my addition funnel, it arrived broken twice due to shoddy packaging. When I finally received the funnel, though, it was like unwrapping
a Ming vase. I am sure it will last a very long time if treated properly.
I imagine I'll go through the same ordeal with my reflux condenser, but I'm also sure I'll end up with one that will last 20 years.
For every item in those American-made sets that have lasted 20 years, how many got smashed when a spatula was dropped placed on top of them in the
chemistry drawer or when they were placed on a cold tabletop after heating? Not every microchip ends up in a server, and not every adapter should
handle boiling sulfuric acid... I'd bet you could drop kick a lot of ancient Chinese earthenware (or for that matter, 100 year-old china teacups)
across the garage without any damage, but for every piece like that, there were hundreds more that have shattered.
China has subsidized shipping policies that I believe provide insurance, so shippers don't necessarily have a financial interest in supplying the best
packaging.
[Edited on 30-12-2016 by JJay]
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Texium
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I have wondered if some of the older pieces of glassware that I own have survived for decades of use by natural selection of a sort. Maybe that the
flasks that made it to me are more well-annealed and even than their compatriots that broke over the years.
It's an interesting thought, not sure if there's any truth to it though.
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JJay
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Quote: Originally posted by zts16  | I have wondered if some of the older pieces of glassware that I own have survived for decades of use by natural selection of a sort. Maybe that the
flasks that made it to me are more well-annealed and even than their compatriots that broke over the years.
It's an interesting thought, not sure if there's any truth to it though. |
Well, you could always do a controlled experiment to find out!
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Sulaiman
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bad day
A nice sunny morning, and I finally felt fit enough to distill some EtOH today 
took almost 2 hours to set up (I'm not that fit yet)
the still ran long enough to get c20ml of distillate from 1.4l in the pot, then it stopped ...
my cheap hoplate melted it's internal thin pvc insulated ac input wires 
... then it started to rain on my outdoor workspace 
on the brighter side, the heating element for my diy 500ml 250W mantle arrived today
... now looking for tin cans .....
CAUTION : Hobby Chemist, not Professional or even Amateur
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Geocachmaster
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Mood: Corroded, just like my spatulas
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@Sulaiman I bought one of the 250ml liners, but I didn't think about the fact they're meant for 240 Vac... Then my poorly constructed heating mantle
(not much insulation) meant only 20 out of the 65 watts made it into the flask. Not to mention the major electricution hazard from my poor wiring.
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Sulaiman
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IF you can find a mains transformer of required VA (i.e. 250 VA in this case)
that has dual 110 Vac primaries, you can use it as step=up transformer,
a 110:110 Vac isolation transformer of half of required VA also works.
CAUTION : Hobby Chemist, not Professional or even Amateur
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Geocachmaster
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Location: Maine, USA
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Mood: Corroded, just like my spatulas
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That's what I was thinking but unfortunately I don't have the right transformer, it's back to the oil bath for now
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tsathoggua1
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Last time I ordered glass from china, give or take a couple, 100 pieces or thereabout, every last bit arrived wrapped and packaged perfectly, even
surrounding the condensers in blocks of something tougher than styrofoam but of a similar foamed plastic nature over the coolant inlet/outlets. Entire
lot all packed up individually, and the dead-space in the crate filled with soft packing. Not a scratch on any of it. Only thing not to survive was a
100ml 2-necked flask, and that was my own fault, after having used it and dropping the damned thing. Empty at the time, thankfully.
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Db33
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beginner experience
So i recently sent a bit of Propionyl Chloride to another member here. I have a bottle of this stuff and am saving it for something particular so i
hadnt really dealt with it yet. I have never dealt with this chemical but i did have a tiny bottle of Acetic Anhydride once that i was told was kind
of similar. So all i did was, i took the bottle of prop chloride and poured it into a graduated cylinder to measure it. Within seconds i couldnt even
breathe and my eyes were hurting cuz of how strong this stuff is. It fumes a little and is extremely pungent. I thought it would be bad like dealing
with hydrogen chloride but i think this was worse. IT was just really strong. Thats the last time i do that without a respirator and goggles.
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MrHomeScientist
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I had a similar experience when I bought tetralin without thoroughly researching it beforehand. Wasn't aware it had such a strong, nauseating (to me)
smell. Transferring it from the jug it shipped in to several glass bottles was not a fun experience.
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JJay
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Ever open a bottle of bromine?
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Texium
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Threads Merged
1-2-2017 at 18:16 |
Texium
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Thread Moved
1-2-2017 at 18:16 |
NedsHead
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I had a close call with some nitrocellulose I was storing in my gun safe, I placed it in the ammunition compartment a long time ago and forgot about
it.
it's summer here and the part of the house where I keep my safe gets quite warm and fluctuates a bit which sped up the breakdown of the guncotton (it
was neutralised and washed thoroughly before storage)
When I opened the ammo compartment to grab some primers I immediately smelled NO2 and saw a layer of rust on the latch (PANIC!)
Luckily, it doesn't look like my rifles were attacked but I'll give them a good clean and oil tonight anyway, just to be sure.
Below are some pics of the offending guncotton, the jar lid that the NO2 ate through and the damaged latch and primers.
Only powders, primers and ammo will be stored with the firearms from now on.
 
 
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mr.crow
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Not lab related but certainly a bad day and chemical related. I recently moved into a new place and the previous owner had apparently spilled a whole
jug of laundry detergent under the washer and dryer. I literally had to scrape lint, dust and pube encrusted soap off the floor with a chisel. Today
my fingers are super dry and sting like crazy. Not fun.
Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble
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Σldritch
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While on my accident streak I had an accidental detonation. I was trying to make nitrite by the reduction of nitrate with sodium sulfide... Again, and
it detonated spraying sulfur smelling goop on windows and walls, luckily it did this relativly safely outside so no real damage was done, it didnt
even crack the crucible but i think it is time to give up on this synthesis.
Im going to try the electctrolytic oxidation of ammonia instead.
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mayko
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I've been doing some experiments with corn syrup and have managed to get it everywhere and all over everything. It doesn't take too much to clean it
up, but it has a tendency to cement stuff to the countertop. Most things I've been able to dislodge, but one petri dish was so firmly stuck that it
broke rather than come loose. There's still glass glued to the counter top that I haven't been able to get loose
al-khemie is not a terrorist organization
"Chemicals, chemicals... I need chemicals!" - George Hayduke
"Wubbalubba dub-dub!" - Rick Sanchez
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Σldritch
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Im was finally sucessful with the nitrite but i broke my glass thimble placing it in the sink on top of the drain so it fell over...
Here is another one:
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MrHomeScientist
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Sort of a cross-post, but I thought it belonged here too.
Last night I was doing an experiment on making boron from boric oxide, by mixing the crushed oxide with Mg powder and heating in a small propane
furnace. Just a few minutes into heating, I was poking at it with a graphite rod to try mixing things around. It suddenly reached the activation
temperature and I was met with a wooshing sound, a blinding white light, and very hot boron flying out of the furnace. While I was right next to it.
The tabletop was scorched in several places and my shirt now has a burn mark on it. Luckily, I was doing this outside and was wearing a face shield
and welding gloves. I should have also been wearing my welding jacket, apparently. That really surprised me because the reaction shouldn't produce any
gas, so I don't know why it would "explode" like that. Always be prepared for the worst!
The upside is it looks like this method worked beautifully, and I have lots of black B powder drying on the filter paper now. Should make for a fun
YouTube video!
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The Volatile Chemist
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Well I guess I don't have too much to complain about, but I dirtied half my glassware for a phenolphthalein synth that failed simply because I
neglected to add sulfuric acid. I did get a very little product in solution, which was a nice proof of concept, however, and I also silenced a nagging
that I'd had, that sulfuric acid, when used as a catalyst in reactions involving the release of water, could hardly be necessary. So, all in all, not
too bad, but I have to prep some phthalic anhydride all the way from di-n-butylphthalate, so it'll be a while before I can retry the experiment.
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CharlieA
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I attempted to look at your write-ups, but both links gave me an "account suspended" screen. What am I doing wrong? (I will admit in advance to being
severely computer-challenged.)
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NEMO-Chemistry
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| Quote: Originally posted by CharlieA | | I attempted to look at your write-ups, but both links gave me an "account suspended" screen. What am I doing wrong? (I will admit in advance to being
severely computer-challenged.) |
You normally get that when the person stops paying for the server. In this case i had a peek at the history and I think it never got passed the under
construction stage.
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TheNerdyFarmer
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I recently broke my liebig condenser. Was a very sad day. With this recent unfortunate event, my ongoing project has come to a halt and I am forced to
wait patiently by the mailbox for its replacement to come.
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The Volatile Chemist
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| Quote: Originally posted by NEMO-Chemistry | | Quote: Originally posted by CharlieA | | I attempted to look at your write-ups, but both links gave me an "account suspended" screen. What am I doing wrong? (I will admit in advance to being
severely computer-challenged.) |
You normally get that when the person stops paying for the server. In this case i had a peek at the history and I think it never got passed the under
construction stage.
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Well if you look long enough back you'd find it did indeed have a website there - though you'd need to look at the ptp.x10.mx link for that. I just
use it as a placeholder for the moment, until I have something to actually put there. These days I don't really do big writeups. But when I make some
progress on a PDF of amateur-accessible syntheses and the characterization of compounds, I'll put it up there along with the indices.
Ironically, when you checked, the website had just gone suspended. It should be unsuspended now (free host, just have to make sure I log in monthly).
[Edited on 11-20-2017 by The Volatile Chemist]
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