Laboratory Apparatus And Their Uses

Lab apparatus is an important part of chemistry and science in general. In this page you will learn about lab equipment and its uses.

Name	Description	Picture
Beaker	Used to hold and heat liquids. Multipurpose and essential in the lab.
Bottle	Bottles can be ued for storage, for mixing and for displaying.
Bunsen Burner	Bunsen burners are used for heating and exposing items to flame. They have many more uses than a hot plate, but do not replace a hot plate.
Buret	The buret is used in titrations to measure precisely how much liquid is used.
Crucible	Crucibles are used to heat small quantities to very high temperatures.
Erlenmeyer Flask	The Erlenmeyer Flask is used to heat and store liquids. The advantage to the Erlenmeyer Flask is that the bottom is wider than the top so it will heat quicker because of the greater surface area exposed to the heat.
Evaporating Dish	The Evaporating Dish is used to heat and evaporate liquids.
Florence Flask	The Florence Flask is used for heating subtances that need to be heated evenly. The bulbed bottom allows the heat to distribute through the liquid more evenly. The Florence Flask is mostly used in distillation experiments.
Food Coloring	Food Coloring is used in many experiments to show color change and to make the experiment more exciting.
Funnel	The Funnel is a piece of eqipment that is used in the lab but is not confined to the lab. The funnel can be used to target liguids into any container so they will not be lost or spilled.
Microspatula	The Microspatula, commonly called a spatula, is used for moving small amounts of solid from place to place.
Mortar and Pestle	The Mortar and Pestle are used to crush solids into powders for experiments, usually to better dissolve the solids.
Paper Towels	Paper Towels are essential to the lab environment. They will be used in almost every lab.
Pipet	The pipet is used for moving small amounts of liquid from place to place. They are usually made of plastic and are disposable
Ring Stand	Ring stands are used to hold items being heated. Clamps or rings can be used so that items may be placed above the lab table for heating by bunsen burners or other items.
Stir Rod	The stir rods are used to stir things. They are usually made of glass. Stir Rods are very useful in the lab setting.
Stopper	Stoppers come in many different sizes. The sizes are from 0 to 8. Stoppers can have holes for thermometers and for other probes that may be used.
Test tube Brush	The test tube brush is used to easily clean the inside of a test tube.
Test tube Holder	The holder is used to hold test tubes when they are hot and untouchable.
Test tube Rack	The testtube rack is used to hold testtubes while reactions happen in them or while they are not needed.
Thermometer	The thermometer is used to take temperature of solids, liquids, and gases. They are usually in oC, but can also be in oF
Tongs	Tongs are used to hold many different things such as flasks, crucibles, and evaporating dishes when they are hot.
Triangle	The triangle is used to hold crucibles when they are being heated. They usually sit on a ring stand
Volumetric Flask	The Volumetric flask is used to measure one specific volume. They are mostly used in mixing solutions where a one liter or one half a liter is needed.
Watch Glass	The watch glass is used to hold solids when being weighed or transported. They should never be heated.

COMPOUND MICROSCOPE PARTS

A high power or compound microscope achieves higher levels of magnification than a stereo or low power microscope. It is used to view smaller specimens such as cell structures which cannot be seen at lower levels of magnification.

Essentially, a compound microscope consists of structural and optical components. However, within these two basic systems, there are some essential components that every microscopist should know and understand.

These key microscope parts are illustrated and explained below.

STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS

The three basic structural components of a compound microscope are the head, base and arm.

• Head/Body houses the optical parts in the upper part of the microscope
• Base of the microscope supports the microscope and houses the illuminator
• Arm connects to the base and supports the microscope head. It is also used to carry the microscope.

When carrying a compound microscope always take care to lift it by both the arm and base, simultaneously.

OPTICAL COMPONENTS

There are two optical systems in a compound microscope: Eyepiece Lenses and Objective Lenses:

Eyepiece or Ocular is what you look through at the top of the microscope. Typically, standard eyepieces have a magnifying power of 10x. Optional eyepieces of varying powers are available, typically from 5x-30x.

Eyepiece tube holds the eyepieces in place above the objective lens. Binocular microscope heads typically incorporate a diopter adjustment ring that allows for the possible inconsistencies of our eyesight in one or both eyes. The monocular (single eye usage) microscope does not need a diopter. Binocular microscopes also swivel (Interpupillary Adjustment) to allow for different distances between the eyes of different individuals.

Objective Lenses are the primary optical lenses on a microscope. They range from 4x-100x and typically, include, three, four or five on lens on most microscopes. Objectives can be forward or rear-facing.

Nosepiece houses the objectives. The objectives are exposed and are mounted on a rotating turret so that different objectives can be conveniently selected. Standard objectives include 4x, 10x, 40x and 100x although different power objectives are available.

Coarse and Fine Focus knobs are used to focus the microscope. Increasingly, they are coaxial knobs - that is to say they are built on the same axis with the fine focus knob on the outside. Coaxial focus knobs are more convenient since the viewer does not have to grope for a different knob.

Stage is where the specimen to be viewed is placed. A mechanical stage is used when working at higher magnifications where delicate movements of the specimen slide are required.

Stage Clips are used when there is no mechanical stage. The viewer is required to move the slide manually to view different sections of the specimen.

Aperture is the hole in the stage through which the base (transmitted) light reaches the stage.

Illuminator is the light source for a microscope, typically located in the base of the microscope. Most light microscopes use low voltage, halogen bulbs with continuous variable lighting control located within the base.

Condenser is used to collect and focus the light from the illuminator on to the specimen. It is located under the stage often in conjunction with an iris diaphragm.

Iris Diaphragm controls the amount of light reaching the specimen. It is located above the condenser and below the stage. Most high quality microscopes include an Abbe condenser with an iris diaphragm. Combined, they control both the focus and quantity of light applied to the specimen.

Condenser Focus Knob moves the condenser up or down to control the lighting focus on the specimen.

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CONSTELLATION

Andromeda, the Chained Princess	Lepus, the Hare
Aquarius, the Water Bearer	Libra, the Scales
Aquila, the Eagle	Lyra, the Lyre
Ara, the Altar	Boötes, the Bear Driver
Aries, the Ram	Microscopium, the Microscope
Auriga, the Charioteer	Monoceros, the Unicorn
Camelopardalis, the Giraffe	Orion, the Hunter
Canes Venatici, the Hunting Dogs	Pegasus, the Winged Horse
Canis Major, the Great Dog	Perseus, the Hero
Carina, The Keel	Pisces, the Fishes
Cancer, the Crab	Canis Minor, the Lesser Dog
Caelum, the Sculptor’s Cheasel	Pisces, the Fish
Capricornus, the Sea Goat	Piscis Austrinus, the Southern Fish
Cassiopeia, the Queen	Puppis, the Stern
Cepheus, the King	Pyxis, the Compass
Cetus, the Whale or Sea Monster	Sagitta, the Arrow
Columba, the Dove	Sagittarius, the Archer
Corona Borealis, the Crown	Scorpius, the Scorpion
Cygnus, the Swan	Sculptor, the Sculptor
Delphinus, the Dolphin	Scutum, the Shield
Draco, the Dragon	Serpens Caput, the Serpent's Head
Equuleus, the Little Horse	Taurus, the Bull
Gemini, the Twins	Triangulum, the Triangle
Hercules	Ursa Major, the Great Bear
Lacerta, the Lizard	Ursa Minor, the Little Bear
Leo Minor, the Little Lion	Vulpecula, the Fox

Black Holes

JUPITER'S MOON EUROPA HELPS SOLVE STRIPEY MYSTERY

Last year, something strange happened to Jupiter.

Not only was the gas giant recovering from an asteroid smash, it also underwent a... change. Jupiter lost one of its trademark stripes -- a.k.a. the South Equatorial Belt (SEB) -- for no apparent reason.

Although astronomers at the time theorized that there were perhaps some high-altitude clouds blocking our view of the SEB, it wasn't until the keen infrared eyes of Keck Observatory on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, zoomed in on the planet that the SEB came into focus again.

What's more, Jupiter's moon Europa helped astronomers unravel the mystery as to where the belt has been hiding.

Using the Keck II telescope’s Adaptive Optics system, astronomers would normally point a powerful laser above the observatory to create a "guide star." This artificial point of light can then be used to detect turbulence in the Earth's atmosphere; the shimmering laser signal feeds back into the adaptive optics, allowing the telescope to slightly deform its mirror (in real-time) to compensate for the distortion.

 BIG PIC: Could Observatory Lasers Damage Satellites?

The result is a sharper image of an astronomical target, as atmospheric distortions can be removed from observations. It's these same distortions that can cause stars to "twinkle" at night.

So, with a little help from a little moon, an amazing infrared picture of Jupiter's inner turmoil came into focus.But there was a problem when observing Jupiter. As the planet is so bright, the laser guide star was overwhelmed and couldn't be used for Jovian observations. But all was not lost, Europa was there to lend a hand and on Nov. 30, 2010, it was very bright, right next to Jupiter in the sky. Europa became the "guide star" for the adaptive optics to sense atmospheric distortions.

Thermal infrared radiation (with a wavelength of 5 microns) was detected by Keck leaking from Jupiter's interior. When combining the thermal radiation data with near-infrared solar radiation being reflected by the upper clouds in the Jovian atmosphere, the churning detail in the cloaked SEB was revealed (pictured top).

As the SEB slowly begins to reveal itself once more, icy clouds in the upper atmosphere gradually dissipating, only the Keck infrared telescope could cut through the Jovian atmosphere to reveal the hidden trademark stripe we've been missing out on for these last few months.