Bunsen Burner

A Bunsen burner can be very useful if is as used properly. There are many different types of Bunsen burners but they all use a mixture of gas and oxygen to make a flame that could be used in a laboratory. To use a Bunsen burner, there are several critical steps. But before one starts any experiment, one should always read through the experiment procedures and make sure that one clearly understands all steps of the experiment. First, one must make sure the main gas is on. It is very important to put on one's safety goggles and remember to wear them the entire time of the experiment. Once one has obtained a Bunsen burner, one must place the rubber hose, from the Bunsen burner, firmly onto the gas valve, that should be off at this point. One should also make sure that the Bunsen burner is far enough from the edge that it cannot be bumped and fall off the counter top.

Now, it is time to light the Bunsen burner. Light the match first. If one was to turn the gas valve on before lighting the match, then the gas could build up and cause an explosion once the match is lit. This is why it is important to light the match first then turn on the gas valve. Hold the lit match over the Bunsen burner and turn on the gas. One can adjust the flame by either turning the gas valve or turning the air valve on the Bunsen burner. When one is using a Bunsen burner, one wants a blue flame with an inner cone in the middle. The Bunsen burner should sound like a small rocket; the roaring sound is what one wants. If the flame is orange then it is not hot enough and has too much oxygen. At this point, the Bunsen burner is all set for use.

When one is done with the Bunsen burner, it is time for clean up. Make sure to keep one's safety goggles on until the experiment is completely over. Turn off the gas valve and remove the rubber hose from the gas nozzle. One should be very careful because the Bunsen burner is very hot at this point. Wait for it to cool down and the put the Bunsen