Ceramic balls available at Aldi UK

Aldi has ceramic balls for sale at approximately 0.75l tub for £4.

A tongue test indicates they are not porous. They do not break easily and the fracture surface is not smooth like glass but passes the tongue test. The tub says they are good too 200C (that may be limited by thermal shock) and can be washed by hand. they are about 10mm dia.

They do have a rough surface but as they are not porous they will not make good anti bumping beads.

They may be useful as cheap grinding media or packing for a large column. I have not tested their chemical resistance.

Quote: Originally posted by Polysialate

What are they sold as/for? I don't know what isle this would go in...

Actually they are for the bottom of pies.
When you want to partially cook the crust before filling but you don't want the whole thing puffing up. You put some weight on it but you choose something that will allow hot air to circulate in the oven.
Traditionally actual dried beans or peas were used, which is why they are named such. But something ceramic is a bit more weighty, does not taint the pastry and is more durable.

My suspicion is that they are not likely to find much practical use in the lab. They are probably going to be cheap and brittle: not useful for a grinding medium and having no advantage over a bit of pottery as boiling chips. But what is the harm in trying. If you are extremely lucky they are zeolite and can be used as 4A sieves.