Chemistry set facts for kids
A chemistry set is an educational toy allowing the user (typically a teenager) to perform simple chemistry experiments.
Contents
Decline
Around the 1960s, safety concerns began to limit the range of materials and experiments available in chemistry sets. In the United States, the Federal Hazardous Substances Labeling Act of 1960, the Toy Safety Act of 1969 and the Consumer Product Safety Commission, established in 1972, and the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 all introduced new levels of regulation, which led to the decline of chemistry sets' popularity during the 1970s and 1980s. The A. C. Gilbert Company went out of business in 1967, and the Porter Chemical Company went out of business in 1984.
Modern chemistry sets, with a few exceptions, tend to include a more restricted range of chemicals and simplified instructions. Many chemistry kits are single use, containing only the types and amounts of chemicals for a specific application.
Nonetheless, a GCSE equipment set was produced, offering students better equipment, and there is a more up-market range of sets available from Thames & Kosmos such as the C3000 Kit.
Contents
Typical contents found in chemistry sets, including equipment and chemicals, might include:
Equipment
- vials of dry chemicals
- metal wires, such as copper, nickel or zinc
- metal filings, such as iron
- graphite rods
- a balance and weights
- a measuring cylinder
- a thermometer
- a magnifying glass
- pipettes
- beakers, retorts, flasks, test tubes, U-tubes or other reaction vessels
- cork stoppers
- watch glasses
- glass and rubber tubing
- test tube holders, retort stands and clamps
- an alcohol burner or other heat source
- a filter funnel and filter paper
- universal indicator paper or litmus paper
- safety goggles
- an instruction manual
Chemicals
- Aluminium ammonium sulfate
- Aluminium sulfate
- Ammonium chloride
- Borax
- Calcium chloride
- Calcium hydroxide
- Calcium oxide
- Calcium oxychloride
- Calcium sulfate
- Cobalt chloride
- Cupric chloride
- Copper sulfate
- Ferric ammonium sulfate
- Ferrous sulfate
- Gum arabic
- Magnesium ribbon
- Magnesium chloride
- Magnesium sulfate
- Manganese sulfate
- Phenolphthalein
- Potassium chloride
- Potassium iodide
- Potassium permanganate
- Potassium sulfate
- Powdered charcoal
- Powdered iron
- Sodium bisulfate
- Sodium bisulfite
- Sodium carbonate
- Sodium ferrocyanide
- Sodium silicate
- Sodium thiosulfate
- Strontium chloride
- Sulfur
- Tannic acid
- Tartaric acid
- Zinc sulfate
The experiments described in the instruction manual typically require a number of chemicals not shipped with the chemistry set, because they are common household chemicals:
- Acetic acid (in vinegar)
- Ammonium carbonate ("baker's ammonia" or "salts of hartshorn")
- Citric acid (in lemons)
- Ethanol (in denatured alcohol)
- Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)
- Sodium chloride ("table salt")
Other chemicals, including strong acids, bases and oxidizers cannot be safely shipped with the set and others having a limited shelf life have to be purchased separately from a drug store:
Images for kids
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Description of a portable chest of chemistry, 1791
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Griffin’s Chemical Laboratory, Glasgow, ca.1850.
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Porter Chemcraft Senior Set, 1957, at the Science History Institute
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A 1940s Gilbert chemistry set
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Gilbert Lab Technician Set for Girls, 1958, at the Science History Institute
