A water bath is laboratory equipment made from a container filled with heated water. It is used to incubate samples in water at a constant temperature over a long period of time. Most water baths have a digital or an analogue interface to allow users to set a desired temperature, but some water baths have their temperature controlled by a current passing through a reader.
Uses include warming of reagents, melting of substrates, determination of boiling point, or incubation of cell cultures. It is also used to enable certain chemical reactions to occur at high temperature.
Water baths are preferred heat sources for heating flammable chemicals, as their lack of open flame prevents ignition.[1] Different types of water baths are used depending on application. For all water baths, it can be used up to 99.9 °C.[2][3]
When the required temperature is above 100 °C, alternative methods such as oil bath, silicone oil bath or sand bath may be used.[4]
- ^ Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals. National Academy Press, Washington, D.C. 1995. p. 95. doi:10.17226/4911. ISBN 978-0-309-05229-0.
- ^ "Thermo Scientific Precision and Lab-Line Water Baths" (PDF). thermoscientific.com.
- ^ "General Water Baths" (PDF). labwit.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-05-09. Retrieved 2015-06-14.
- ^ "Baths and Circulators" (PDF). pubs.acs.org. October 2004.