section_path: Uses/Laboratories
section_name: Laboratories
paragraph_text: Laboratories
  
  Glass is an important material in scientific laboratories for the manufacture of experimental apparatus because it is relatively cheap, readily formed into required shapes for experiment, easy to keep clean, can withstand heat and cold treatment, is generally non-reactive with many reagents, and its transparency allows for the observation of chemical reactions and processes. Laboratory glassware applications include flasks, Petri dishes, test tubes, pipettes, graduated cylinders, glass-lined metallic containers for chemical processing, fractionation columns, glass pipes, Schlenk lines, gauges, and thermometers. Although most standard laboratory glassware has been mass-produced since the 1920s, scientists still employ skilled glassblowers to manufacture bespoke glass apparatus for their experimental requirements.