Table of Contents
- 1 What are the differences between mercury and alcohol?
- 2 Do alcohol and mercury thermometers read the same?
- 3 What is alcohol thermometer and what is the advantage of using alcohol thermometer?
- 4 Why do we use alcohol in thermometers?
- 5 What’s the difference between a mercury and alcohol thermometer?
- 6 What are the disadvantages of an alcohol thermometer?
- 7 Which is the best thermometer to measure temperature?
What are the differences between mercury and alcohol?
It expands linearly and less than alcohol and any other liquid. It is more durable than alcohol thermometer because mercury does not evaporate easily. It is smaller in size as compared to alcohol one. Mercury does not wet the wall of the thermometer, which means that results can be highly accurate.
Do alcohol and mercury thermometers read the same?
Mercury has a greater coefficient of thermal expansion than alcohol. This means a column of mercury will expand and rise more than a column of alcohol for the same temperature change. As a result, you can get finer readings with mercury. However, clinical mercury thermometers are on the decline.
How accurate is an alcohol thermometer?
Alcohol thermometers are also inexpensive and durable. They are typically not as accurate as mercury thermometers because of the alcohol’s susceptibility to evaporation, polymerization potential and capillary separation. Their primary advantage is safety to humans and the environment.
What is alcohol thermometer and what is the advantage of using alcohol thermometer?
A thermometer comparison
| advantages | disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Alcohol thermometer (compared to a mercury thermometer) | |
| lower freezing point (-114 �C) | less durable (alcohol evaporates) |
| larger coefficient of expansion | alcohol can polymerise |
| less hazardous | fluid loss by evaporation hard to avoid |
Why do we use alcohol in thermometers?
Alcohol thermometers are used rather than mercury thermometers in very cold regions because alcohol has a lower freezing point than mercury. Pure ethanol freezes at -115 degrees C, while mercury freezes at -38 degrees C.
What are the disadvantages of clinical thermometer?
Their main disadvantage is that they are fairly easy to break and if they do, it results in small splinters of glass and the release of mercury which is quite toxic if absorbed into the body.
What’s the difference between a mercury and alcohol thermometer?
What is the difference between Alcohol Thermometer and Mercury Thermometer? ¤ Mercury thermometer has mercury inside the bulb as the temperature sensitive fluid, and in alcohol thermometers, it is an alcohol. ¤ Since alcohol is non toxic, alcohol thermometers are much safer to use than the mercury thermometers.
What are the disadvantages of an alcohol thermometer?
Disadvantages of Alcohol Thermometer It cannot measure high temperatures than the boiling point of the liquid inside the bulb. The capillary wall gets wet by The liquid should be dyed before filling the bulb.
What is the boiling point of alcohol in a thermometer?
The measurable temperature range varies according to the used fluid inside the bulb. For example, boiling point of ethanol is 80°C and the freezing point is -115°C. So in an alcohol thermometer containing ethanol, -115°C to 80°C temperature variations can be measured. Alcohol is a colorless, volatile fluid.
Which is the best thermometer to measure temperature?
Therefore, mercury thermometers are best at measuring higher temperatures than the lower temperatures. Thus, this is widely used in laboratories to measure the temperature variations of chemical reactions. What is the difference between Alcohol Thermometer and Mercury Thermometer?