Science Practical 2

A Bunsen Burner,  one of the
most important apparatus in
the laboratory

HOT STUFF

In this practical, we were taught about the bunsen burner, and how to light it up.

The bunsen burner is made up of five important parts,the barrel, air hole, gas jet, collar and the base. Together with the gas tap, a fire is possible. I will give the description of each component of the bunsen burner, as well as the gas tap.

Barrel: To raise the flame to a suitable height for burning.

Air hole: To allow air to enter the burner

Gas Jet: To enable the gas to rush out from the gas supply and draw in air

Collar: To control the amount of air entering the burner by opening or closing the airhole

Base: To support the burner so that it will not topple

Gas Tap: To control the flow of gas to the bunsen burner

After learning about the parts of the bunsen burner, we learnt the steps that had to be taken to light a bunsen burner.

THE PROCESS:

1. Check the rubber tubing is connected to the gas tap.

2. Make sure the air hole is closed (collar is covering air hole).

3. Use the striker ( a gold-coloured thing that produces a spark for the gas to light up) and bring it to the top of the barrel.

4. On the gas tap for the gas to flow out.

5. Use the striker which will produce a spark to light up the gas, producing a flame.

TA-DAA! That is how you get a flame on a bunsen burner.

*The gas from the gas tap is poisonous. Always ensure the gas tap is off when you are not using the bunsen burner.*

Strike backs:

Strike backs occur when the air hole is fully open. Instead of burning at the top of the barrel, the flame will be burning in the jet. The flame will be green and will produce a loud sound. When you see or hear this, turn off the gas tap IMMEDIATELY. After that, do not touch the collar immediately as it may be hot. Allow it to cool down before touching it again.

2 Different Flames:

There are 2 different coloured flames, one blue and one yellow. The yellow flame is not hot and is easy to see, while the blue flame is hot and used for heating, and is quite hard ro see. The next practical will explain more on these different flames.