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Platinum Crucible: Shaped from Foil in a Hollow in a Board (Morfit, 1849)
Charlie

Created by

Charlie

7. November 2026DE
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Platinum Crucible: Shaped from Foil in a Hollow in a Board (Morfit, 1849)

A small platinum crucible for igniting precipitates at high heat. Campbell Morfit (1849): "The experimenter himself can in any emergency readily form a crucible out of platinum foil by shaping it with the thumb or a small hammer, in a hemispherical cavity made in a board for the purpose." Platinum crucibles must be of pure metal and hammered, not turned; thin enough to weigh on a delicate balance. Foil thickness and the size of the hollow are not given. Source: C. Morfit, Chemical and Pharmaceutic Manipulations (1849), pp. 196-197. Picture: Fig. 164.
Beginner
Unknown

Instructions

1

Read Morfit

"The experimenter himself can in any emergency readily form a crucible out of platinum foil by shaping it with the thumb or a small hammer, in a hemispherical cavity made in a board for the purpose."
2

Make the hollow

Cut a hemispherical cavity in a board, the size of the crucible wanted. Morfit's crucibles hold from a fluidrachm to three fluid ounces; a half-ounce one is the most needed in analysis. How the cavity is cut is not given (ours: a gouge in a hardwood board).

Tools needed:

Hardwood BoardHardwood Board
GougeGouge
Unknown DimensionsUnknown Dimensions
3

Shape the foil

Lay a piece of pure platinum foil over the hollow and press it in with the thumb, or work it in with a small hammer, until it takes the hemispherical shape. The foil thickness, and how the foil is made, are not given (unknown).

Materials for this step:

PlatinumPlatinum1 foil

Tools needed:

Hardwood BoardHardwood Board
Ball Peen HammerBall Peen Hammer
Unknown Forming MethodUnknown Forming Method
4

Care of the crucible

Blisters and flaws that appear after use come from impure metal and bad workmanship; remove them by the force of a small hammer. Loosen salts with boiling water and rub off stains with sand or pumice stone. Do not use sharp pointed instruments on it.

Tools needed:

Ball Peen HammerBall Peen Hammer

Materials

1
  • 1 foil
    Placeholder

Tools Required

5

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