6116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware Science, Tech, Math > Science How to Clean Lab Glassware SHARE FLIP EMAIL pant @ Table of Contents Lab Glassware Cleaning Basics Washing Out Common Chemicals Washing SI ial Glassware By Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D. Updated on January 09, 2020 -ntpe:iiwwwthoughteo.comhow-o-clean-laboratory-lassware-606051 Bibica / Getty Images Drying or Not D1 Additional Tins ve6116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware Lab Glassware Cleaning Basics It's generally easier to clean glassware if you do it right away. When a detergent is used, it's usually one designed for lab glassware, such as Liquinox or Alconox. These detergents are preferable to any dishwashing detergent that might be used on dishes at home. Usually, detergent and tap water are neither required nor desirable. You can rinse the glassware with the proper solvent, then finish up with a couple of rinses with distilled water, followed by final rinses with deionized water. Washing Out Common Chemicals Water Soluble Solutions (e.g, sodium chloride or sucrose solutions): Rinse three to four times with deionized water, then put the glassware awa Water Insoluble Solutions (¢.g., solutions in hexane or chloroform): Rinse two to three times with ethanol or acetone, rinse three to four times with deionized water, then put the glassware away. In some situations, other solvents need to be used for the initial rinse. Strong Acids (c.g., concentrate d HCI or H2S0,): Under the fume hood, carefully rinse the glassware with copious volumes of tap water. Rinse three to four times with deionized water, then put the glassware away. Strong Bases (e.g., 6M NaOH or concentrated NH,OH): Under the fume hood, carefully rinse the glassware with copious volumes of tap water. Rinse three to four times with deionized water, then put the glassware away. Weak Acids (¢.g., acetic acid solutions or dilutions of strong acids such as 0.1M or 1M HCl or H,S0,): water before putting the glassware away. three to four times with deionized Weak Bases (¢.g., 0.1M and 1M NaOH and NH,OH): Rinse thoroughly with tap water to remove the base, then rinse three to four times with hntpswwhoughteo,comhaw-4o-clian-laboratory-glassware-606051 2186116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware Glassware Used for Organic Chemistry Rinse the glassware with the appropriate solvent. Use deionized water for water-soluble contents. Use ethanol for ethanol-soluble contents, followed by rinses in deionized water. Rinse with other solvents as needed, followed by ethanol, and, finally, deionized water. If the glassware requires scrubbing, scrub with a brush using hot soapy water, rinse thoroughly with tap water, followed by rinses with deionized water. Burets Wash with hot soapy water, rinse thoroughly with tap water, then rinse three to four times with deionized water. Be sure the final rinses flow off of the glass. Burets nced to be thoroughly clean to be used for quantitative labwork. Pipets and Volumetric Flasks In some cases, you may need to soak the glassware overnight in soapy water. Clean pipets and volumetric flasks using warm soapy water. The glassware may require scrubbing with a brush. Rinse with tap water followed by three to four rinses with deionized water. Drying or Not Drying It is inadvisable to dry glassware with a paper towel or forced air since this can introduce fibers or impurities that can contaminate the solution. Normally, you can allow glassware to air dry on the shelf. Otherwise, if you are adding water to the glassware, it is fine to leave it wet (unless it will affect the concentration of the final solution.) If the solvent will be ether, you can rinse the glassware with ethanol or acetone to remove the water, then rinse with the final solution to remove the alcohol or acetone. Rinsing with Reagent If water will affect the concentration of the final solution, triple rinse the glassware with the solution. Drying Glassware -ntpe:iiwwwthoughteo.comhow-o-clean-laboratory-lassware-606051 se6116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware ‘sometimes you can apply a vacuum to evaporate the solvent. Additional Tips Remove stoppers and stopcocks when they are not in use. Otherwise, they may "freeze" in place. You can de-grease ground glass joints by wiping them with a lint-free towel soaked with ether or acetone. Wear gloves and avoid breathing the fumes. ‘The deionized water rinse should form a smooth sheet when poured sheeting action is not seen, more through clean glassware. If this aggressive cleaning methods may be needed. Cite this Article 9) The Difference Between Distilled Calculating the Concentration of a and Deionized Water Chemical Solution -ntpe:iiwwwthoughteo.comhow-o-clean-laboratory-lassware-606051 486116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware Silver Ornaments: A Holiday Chemistry Project Qualitative Analysis in Chemistry Calculating Concentrations with A Recipe For Blowing Bubbles That Units and Dilutions Bounce How to Remove Ball Point Pen Ink How to Prepare a Sodium Hydroxide or NaOH Solution hntpswwhoughteo,comhaw-4o-clian-laboratory-glassware-606051 se6116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware How to Remove Rust Stains Solubility Definition in Chemistry Vibratory Rock Tumbler Chemistry Laboratory Safety Rules _Instructions -ntpe:iiwwwthoughteo.comhow-o-clean-laboratory-lassware-606051 oe6116123, 117 AM How to Properly Clean Laboratory Glassware What's the Science Behind Bubbles? 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