Where is an alcohol thermometer used to measure?
Ethanol-filled thermometers are used in preference to mercury for meteorological measurements of minimum temperatures and can be used down to −70 °C (−94 °F). The physical limitation of the ability of a thermometer to measure low temperature is the freezing point of the liquid used.
Why do Mountaineers use alcohol thermometer?
Alcohol thermometers are used rather than mercury thermometers in very cold regions because alcohol has a lower freezing point than mercury. Pure ethanol freezes at -115 degrees C, while mercury freezes at -38 degrees C.
How accurate is an alcohol thermometer?
Alcohol thermometers are also inexpensive and durable. They are typically not as accurate as mercury thermometers because of the alcohol’s susceptibility to evaporation, polymerization potential and capillary separation. Their primary advantage is safety to humans and the environment.
Is alcohol used in laboratory thermometer?
Alcohol is used in a laboratory thermometer instead of a clinical thermometer because alcohol has a very low freezing point as comparison to the Mercury. It is used in the cool place or region. Freezing point is the temperature at which a liquid starts changing into solid state.
What are the advantages of alcohol thermometer?
A thermometer comparison
| advantages | disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Alcohol thermometer (compared to a mercury thermometer) | |
| lower freezing point (-114 C) | less durable (alcohol evaporates) |
| larger coefficient of expansion | alcohol can polymerise |
| less hazardous | fluid loss by evaporation hard to avoid |
Can you suggest alternatives to mercury thermometer?
There are numerous alternatives to mercury thermometers. But increasingly, selecting an alternative to Hg is chiefly a matter of choosing among one of the three sensor types used in digital thermometry: platinum resistance (PRT), thermistor, and thermocouple.
Why are mercury thermometers no longer used?
The reason: Mercury released into the environment from a broken thermometer is highly poisonous. Pure mercury and its compounds can cause neurological problems and other ailments in people exposed to them. Federal and state authorities have lobbied since 2002 for bans on medical mercury thermometers.
Why is alcohol used in thermometers instead of mercury?
Alcohol thermometers are used rather than mercury thermometers in very cold regions because alcohol has a lower freezing point than mercury. Pure ethanol freezes at -115 degrees C, while mercury freezes at -38 degrees C. Thermometers rely upon thermal expansion of the liquid in a bulb at the base of a thin glass tube.
When did they stop putting mercury in thermometers?
Those days have passed. Since 2001, 20 states have banned mercury “fever thermometers” for medical use, and regulations tighten every year. Many pharmacies now carry only sterile digital replacements or the less accurate ones with red glop in the bulb.
What is the difference between alcohol and mercury?
It expands linearly and less than alcohol and any other liquid. It is more durable than alcohol thermometer because mercury does not evaporate easily. It is smaller in size as compared to alcohol one. Mercury does not wet the wall of the thermometer, which means that results can be highly accurate.
What is the freezing point of mercury?
-38.83 °C
Is Mercury flammable?
Mercury is non-combustible. The agent itself does not burn, but it may react upon heating to produce corrosive and/or toxic fumes. Fire will produce irritating, corrosive, and/or toxic gases. Use an extinguishing agent suitable for the type of surrounding fire.
What is the boiling point and freezing point of mercury?
Mercury is silvery white, slowly tarnishes in moist air, and freezes into a soft solid like tin or lead at −38.87 °C (−37.97 °F). It boils at 356.9 °C (674 °F). Liquid mercury beads and a glass container.
What happens to mercury when heated?
Elemental (Metallic) Mercury At room temperature, exposed elemental mercury can evaporate to become an invisible, odorless toxic vapor. If heated, it is a colorless, odorless gas. When mercury reacts with another substance, it forms a compound, such as inorganic mercury salts or methylmercury.
Will touching Mercury kill you?
These compounds have been implicated in causing brain and liver damage. The most dangerous mercury compound, dimethylmercury, is so toxic that even a few microliters spilled on the skin, or even on a latex glove, can cause death.
Can you touch pure mercury?
It’s never safe to touch mercury. Mercury is the only metal that is liquid at room temperature. In its liquid metal form, mercury absorbs instantly into the skin; but it also has an extremely high vapor pressure, so an open container of mercury disperses the metal into the air.
Is it bad to play with mercury?
Mercury is dangerous, and you need to be cautious not to be exposed to it directly for long periods of time, but simply handling it is not going to make you drop dead. It’s like cigarettes; deadly over long periods of exposure, but you aren’t going to die if you walk into a smoky bar and have a drink.
Who died from mercury?
Karen Wetterhahn