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Devices used in chemical laboratories for evaporation, the conversion of a liquid into a vapor for the purpose of separating it from another liquid of higher boiling point, or from a solid which is dissolved in it. Evaporators use one or more methods to enact evaporation, including heating, nitrogen blowdown, or vacuum. Evaporators using heat include a heat exchanger or heated bath with temperature controls, pumps, and a condenser. Heat sources include water baths, or blocks of aluminum or aluminum particles, or hot air. Nitrogen blowdown evaporators or concentrators use a jet of gas to continually force off the layer of air that is saturated with vapor just above the surface of the liquid to be evaporated, thereby increasing evaporation rate; these are useful for small sample volumes, under 50 mL. Vacuum evaporators use vacuum pumps to remove the vapor phase of the evaporating solvent. To increase evaporation, samples are shaken, creating liquid vortexes, thus creating a greater surface area. Evaporators that provide rotation of the vessels holding the samples are available.
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