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Microscope Mounting Medium: Canada Balsam Dissolved in Benzene
Canada balsam is the oleoresin of the balsam fir, collected by breaking the blisters on its bark into a bottle (US Dispensatory, 1907). Dried, it is clear and glassy, with a refractive index close to crown glass, so it was long the standard medium for permanent microscope slides, dissolved in a solvent (Wikipedia). Here it is thickened and dissolved in benzene, which the Dispensatory names as dissolving it completely. Proportions are ours.
The picture: our drawing.
Beginner
2 days
Instructions
1
1
Thicken the balsam
Thicken the balsam
Warm the balsam in an evaporating dish over a pan of hot water for some hours, stirring now and then, until a drop pulled out on the rod sets hard and clear when cold.
Materials for this step:
Canada Balsam100 gTools needed:
Evaporating Dish
Saucepan
Hot Plate
Glass Stirring Rod2
2
Dissolve
Dissolve
Off the heat and away from any flame, stir in about its own weight of benzene until it is a clear, flowing syrup.
Materials for this step:
Benzene100 gTools needed:
Glass Stirring Rod
Balance Scale
Nitrile Gloves3
3
Filter and bottle
Filter and bottle
Filter it through paper into a clean bottle and keep it stoppered. If it thickens with time, thin it with a little more benzene.
Tools needed:
Glass Funnel - Stemmed
Filter Paper
Glass Bottles with StoppersTools Required
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