ChemCafe — science, chemistry and physics made simple

Thoughts on Buying Second Hand Lab Glassware Buying second hand lab glassware is a practical and economically sensible choice, provided one addresses safety, quality, and storage concerns carefully. Used glassware...

Copper(I) Oxide and Copper(II) Oxide: Key Differences and Properties Copper(I) oxide and copper(II) oxide differ in oxidation state, color, and stability. Copper(I) oxide often oxidizes to copper(II) oxide and shows...

What Are the Most Interesting Things in Chemistry? Chemistry offers a vast array of fascinating fields, each unraveling different aspects of matter and its transformations. Among the many areas, several...

Why Does Gallium Dissolve Aluminum? Gallium dissolves aluminum because it forms a low-melting alloy with aluminum by penetrating its protective oxide layer and mixing at the atomic level. Aluminum’s Protective...

What’s Causing This Flame Colour (A Deep Blue)? The deep blue colour of a flame often arises from the combustion of carbon monoxide (CO) or ionized metals like copper or...

Acetone and Polystyrene Interaction Explained When acetone interacts with polystyrene foam, it causes the polystyrene to physically expand by soaking up the acetone at a molecular level, contrary to the...

Must a Calibration Curve Necessarily Be Linear? A calibration curve does not necessarily have to be linear. Its primary role is to connect an instrument’s response with the analyte concentration....

Are There Synthetic Substitutes for Natural Rubber? It is true that fully replicating natural rubber synthetically is extremely difficult, and no synthetic rubber matches natural rubber perfectly in quality and...

What to Do If You Break a Mercury Thermometer Breaking a mercury thermometer releases a small amount of metallic mercury, which poses limited immediate health risks if handled correctly. The...

How Much Different from General Chemistry Is Organic Chemistry? Organic chemistry is fundamentally different from general chemistry in both approach and content. While some foundational concepts overlap, organic chemistry requires...