Retort stand, sometimes called a clamp stand or a ring stand, is a piece of scientific equipment, to which clamps can be attached to hold other pieces of equipment. For instance, burettes, commonly used for titration experiments, test tubes and flasks.
Description
- A retort stand in chemistry is, also called a clamp stand, a ring stand, or a support stand, is a piece of scientific equipment intended to support other pieces of equipment and glassware or instance, burettes, test tubes and flasks.
- The typical retort stand consists of a heavy base and a vertical rod, both usually made of metal. A number of accessories, such as clamps of various types and iron rings, can be attached to the rod by thumbscrews, at whatever heights and orientations are necessary to support the target equipment
Specs
- Retort stands commonly have a cast iron base of around 200 x 125 mm.
- The rod may be up to 750 mm and screws into a female thread in the base.
- The height of the rod is sufficient for most experiments and usually fits within fume hoods and glove boxes.
- If a taller rod is required, the solid base is usually replaced by a tripod for stability when supporting larger apparatuses, such as extremely large tubes, bulk chemical bottles etc.
- The height can be adjusted by moving the attached point of the stand and the test tube. The base lowers centre of gravity of the stand, thus increasing stability
Application
- Retort stands are often used in the chemistry laboratory. Example, they are used for distillation experiments such as organic distillations and titrations where they hold a burette.
- The simple form of retort, used in some laboratories, is a glass or metal bulb having a long, curved spout through which the distillate may pass to enter a receiving vessel.
- They are also used as supports mechanism in filtration process
