The Find LabLab Report #767: This stainless flywheel hit max RPM without rattling the bench. Sarah nearly dropped her coffee when she saw it’s down to €19.32 from €149.78. Perfectly balanced for the smart car project. #Engineering #LabLife #TechDeals
LeidenForceThousands apply, few are selected. This article highlights key missteps in PhD applications and interviews, and how to avoid them to increase your chances.
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https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-04128-8
#GraduateSchool #PhDPreparation #AcademicSuccess #ScienceCareers #LabLife
PsychoticSheepAnother photo from my training that I found, this time not from organic chemistry but from inorganic chemistry! Working with the scanning electron microscope.
A scanning electron microscope (SEM) uses a focused electron beam instead of light to image surfaces at the nanometer scale.
Three types:
SEM: The electron beam scans the surface while detectors capture topography and material contrast.
TEM: Electrons transmit through thin samples, revealing atomic scale details inside the material.
STEM: A combination of both, enabling imaging and chemical analysis at the atomic level.
Measurements include microstructure, phase composition, grain size, crack patterns, often combined with mechanical or magnetic properties.
The task was to create a compact table for five samples including microstructure (optical microscope + SEM), hardness, crack resistance parameter, magnetic saturation (Tm³/kg), and coercive field (kA/m), a pure data summary without comments.
#SEM #ScanningElectronMicroscope #MaterialsScience #InorganicChemistry #Microstructure #ElectronMicroscopy #LabLife #Research #TEM #STEM #MaterialCharacterization #HardnessTesting #MagneticProperties #ScienceTraining
A scanning electron microscope (SEM) uses a focused electron beam instead of light to image surfaces at the nanometer scale.
Three types:
SEM: The electron beam scans the surface while detectors capture topography and material contrast.
TEM: Electrons transmit through thin samples, revealing atomic scale details inside the material.
STEM: A combination of both, enabling imaging and chemical analysis at the atomic level.
Measurements include microstructure, phase composition, grain size, crack patterns, often combined with mechanical or magnetic properties.
The task was to create a compact table for five samples including microstructure (optical microscope + SEM), hardness, crack resistance parameter, magnetic saturation (Tm³/kg), and coercive field (kA/m), a pure data summary without comments.
#SEM #ScanningElectronMicroscope #MaterialsScience #InorganicChemistry #Microstructure #ElectronMicroscopy #LabLife #Research #TEM #STEM #MaterialCharacterization #HardnessTesting #MagneticProperties #ScienceTraining
Lab Report #6440: The 6-layer filter caught more sediment than our official gear. Mike rotatable-aimed it at the drain and didn't splash his lab coat once. Solid deal at €10.55 (down from €16.49). #LabLife #KitchenGadgets #TechReview
Another photo from my training, this time captured during the analysis of a polymer sample under the light microscope ✨🔬
The material is based on a polycondensation reaction of 4,4´-dihydroxybiphenyl with an aliphatic dicarboxylic acid chloride. Using an aqueous phase with sodium hydroxide and a phase transfer catalyst results in a polymer whose structure and properties strongly depend on the ordering of its molecular chains.
It becomes especially interesting when looking at the thermal and optical properties. In differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), the material shows two endothermic transitions. This means that the ordered structure is not lost all at once, but stepwise via a liquid crystalline phase into a fully isotropic state.
Under the polarizing microscope, this order becomes directly visible. The sample exhibits birefringence, meaning direction-dependent refraction of light. This only occurs when regions within the material are organized on a scale comparable to the wavelength of light. These structures are exactly what create the fascinating patterns and colors in the image.
In short, a small window into the world of liquid crystals, somewhere between ordered structure and thermally driven disorder.
I love these moments when chemistry is not only measurable, but also visible.
#chemistry #polymer #polymerchemistry #liquidcrystals #microscopy #polarizedlight #birefringence #materials #materialscience #lablife #science #research #stem #scicomm
The material is based on a polycondensation reaction of 4,4´-dihydroxybiphenyl with an aliphatic dicarboxylic acid chloride. Using an aqueous phase with sodium hydroxide and a phase transfer catalyst results in a polymer whose structure and properties strongly depend on the ordering of its molecular chains.
It becomes especially interesting when looking at the thermal and optical properties. In differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), the material shows two endothermic transitions. This means that the ordered structure is not lost all at once, but stepwise via a liquid crystalline phase into a fully isotropic state.
Under the polarizing microscope, this order becomes directly visible. The sample exhibits birefringence, meaning direction-dependent refraction of light. This only occurs when regions within the material are organized on a scale comparable to the wavelength of light. These structures are exactly what create the fascinating patterns and colors in the image.
In short, a small window into the world of liquid crystals, somewhere between ordered structure and thermally driven disorder.
I love these moments when chemistry is not only measurable, but also visible.
#chemistry #polymer #polymerchemistry #liquidcrystals #microscopy #polarizedlight #birefringence #materials #materialscience #lablife #science #research #stem #scicomm
Lab Report #7059: Survived the shaker table at max speed without flickering. Gary used it to light up his lunch break sushi; now the whole breakroom wants one. Only €9.03 right now (was €14.81). A rare win for the budget bin. #TechDeals #GadgetTest #LabLife
Lab Report #2379: The folding frame survived Derek’s "stress test" (aka a heavy lunch). That New Son battery actually packs a punch for only €10.49 (was €10.81). Sarah is currently racing it through the clean room. #LabLife #TechReview #Scooter
I just found this photo of one of the most disgusting preparations of my entire training… PU foam!
First, a highly branched polyester was synthesized from adipic acid, oleic acid, and phthalic anhydride with 1,1,1-tris(hydroxymethyl)propane using PTSA as an acid catalyst. The polycondensation ran for many hours at ~190 °C under nitrogen and vacuum while water was continuously removed as a by-product.
During the reaction, the acid number (determined by titration, mg KOH/g) was monitored until it dropped below 10, with a target around 5. The resulting viscous polyester polyol was then reacted with tolylene-2,4-diisocyanate to produce rigid polyurethane foam.
Chemically interesting.
Visually and olfactorily… slightly traumatic. 🧪😵
#chemistry #organicchemistry #polymerchemistry #polyurethane #polymer #lablife #chemistrylab #chemstudent #polyester #synthesis
First, a highly branched polyester was synthesized from adipic acid, oleic acid, and phthalic anhydride with 1,1,1-tris(hydroxymethyl)propane using PTSA as an acid catalyst. The polycondensation ran for many hours at ~190 °C under nitrogen and vacuum while water was continuously removed as a by-product.
During the reaction, the acid number (determined by titration, mg KOH/g) was monitored until it dropped below 10, with a target around 5. The resulting viscous polyester polyol was then reacted with tolylene-2,4-diisocyanate to produce rigid polyurethane foam.
Chemically interesting.
Visually and olfactorily… slightly traumatic. 🧪😵
#chemistry #organicchemistry #polymerchemistry #polyurethane #polymer #lablife #chemistrylab #chemstudent #polyester #synthesis
Rapport Lab #7594: Test d'étanchéité. Derek a tenté d'intimider le sticker lapin sous l'eau pendant 3h. Le lapin a maintenu un contact visuel joyeux sans jamais décoller. Derek est en congé stress. Adhésion : Absolue. €10.48 ✓
LAB CHRONICLE #26
– Shoot cancelled –
Scenario: caffeinated Leidenfrost demo.
Ambition: Nobel Prize (or just a viral post).
Reality: smell of burnt coffee, empty fire extinguisher, not a single gram of coffee left.
Conclusion:
Science also means knowing when to stop filming, right before the smoke ruins the shot.
But more importantly, it's realizing too late that we sacrificed all the coffee… for that.
#BehindTheExperiment #CoffeeSacrifice #NobelDreams #ChaosUnderControl #LabLife