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Quizzes > Science

Chipped or Cracked Glassware: Safe to Use? True or False

Quick, free cracked glassware safety quiz. Instant results.

Editorial: Review CompletedCreated By: Anna ChalmersUpdated Aug 28, 2025
Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
paper art lab safety quiz icons beaker flask test tube gloves goggles, on sky blue background

This quiz helps you judge when chipped or cracked glassware must be taken out of service and how to handle it safely. Answer quick questions on hot vs. cold glass, cleanup, and tool care to sharpen your lab routine. For more practice, explore experiment glassware safety and a broader glass knowledge test.

Why should chipped or cracked glassware be removed from service?
It may harbor bacteria
It can alter pH readings
It is aesthetically unpleasing
It can break unpredictably and cause injury
Chipped or cracked glassware has weakened structural integrity, making it prone to sudden failure under normal lab conditions. This can lead to spills of hazardous materials and personal injury. Removing damaged glassware reduces the risk of accidents and ensures lab safety.
What should you inspect before using any glassware in the lab?
Presence of cracks or chips
Price tag
Ink color on graduations
Brand label
Inspecting glassware for chips, cracks, or stress points helps prevent unexpected breakage during experiments. Any defect compromises safety and accuracy. A simple visual and tactile check can prevent injuries and contamination.
What is the first action if you notice a small crack in a beaker?
Use it for nonhazardous liquids only
Seal it with tape
Heat it gently to expand the crack
Immediately take it out of service
At the first sign of a crack, glassware should be removed from use to avoid sudden failure. Temporary fixes like tape do not restore structural integrity. Proper disposal or recycling prevents accidents and potential exposure to hazardous contents.
Why is it dangerous to heat glassware that has visible cracks?
It only affects optical clarity
It will enhance reaction speed
Cracks will self-seal when heated
It can shatter under thermal stress
Heating cracked glassware subjects the weakened area to thermal stress, increasing the likelihood of a catastrophic break. Shattering glass can cause chemical spills and personal injury. Always use intact, heat-resistant glassware for hot experiments.
What protective gear is essential when handling glassware?
Radiation badge
Ear plugs
Steel-toed boots
Gloves and safety goggles
Safety goggles protect eyes from flying shards and chemical splashes, while gloves provide a barrier against cuts. Proper PPE reduces the risk of lacerations and chemical exposure. Always don the correct gear before handling glass objects.
When is chipped glassware acceptable for use?
After sanding down the chip
When used for nonhazardous experiments
Never; it must be replaced
Only if taped over
Chipped glassware has compromised strength and should never be used. Even nonhazardous tasks can lead to unexpected failures, risking injury and contamination. Best practice is immediate replacement or disposal following institutional guidelines.
Which tool is recommended for cleaning up broken glass?
Wet paper towels only
Vacuum cleaner
Bare hands
Broom and dustpan or brush
Using a broom and dustpan keeps hands away from sharp edges. Vacuums can damage machinery and spread shards, while bare hands and wet towels increase cut risk. Dispose of fragments in a designated sharps container.
How should you dispose of intact but expired glass labware?
With chemical waste
Down the drain
In a labeled glass disposal box
In the regular trash
Intact but retired glassware should be placed in designated glass disposal containers to prevent injuries. Regular trash can endanger custodial workers, and chemical waste streams are inappropriate for clean glass. Always follow institutional disposal policies.
What indicates a surface scratch might hide a deeper flaw?
When you feel a burr or rough edge
Only if it's on the exterior
When the scratch is shallow
If it reflects a rainbow pattern
A burr or rough edge around a scratch suggests material loss and stress concentration, which can lead to crack initiation. Even shallow-looking damage can compromise glass strength. Damaged glass should be retired or evaluated further.
How does thermal shock cause glassware to fracture?
By mechanical impact only
By exposing it to acid vapors
By rapid temperature change creating internal stress
By slow heating beyond melting point
Thermal shock occurs when one part of the glass heats or cools faster than another, generating internal stress. This stress can exceed the material's tensile strength and cause cracks or breakage. Using heat-resistant glass and gradual temperature changes mitigates the risk.
What is the proper way to test if glassware is hot?
Look for color change only
Touch it briefly with bare skin
Bring the back of your hand close to feel radiant heat
Blow on it
Holding the back of your hand near (not touching) the glassware lets you sense heat without risking burns or cuts. Direct contact with hot glass is dangerous, and blowing on it can disperse chemicals. Proper technique protects you and maintains experiment integrity.
Which type of glassware is most resistant to thermal stress?
Annealed glass
Borosilicate glass
Soda - lime glass
Lead crystal glass
Borosilicate glass has a low coefficient of thermal expansion, making it resistant to thermal shock and stress. It is widely used in labware for heating applications. Soda - lime and lead crystal are more prone to cracking under rapid temperature changes.
Which practice contaminates a chemical waste container?
Labeling clearly
Mixing incompatible wastes
Pouring only pure organic solvents
Using a designated funnel
Mixing incompatible chemicals can cause dangerous reactions, releases of toxic gases, or container rupture. Proper waste segregation prevents contamination and hazards. Always follow chemical compatibility and waste disposal guidelines.
How should acid waste be neutralized before disposal?
Heat strongly to evaporate
Add base slowly while stirring
Dilute with water only
Mix with organic solvent
Neutralizing acid waste involves adding a base (like sodium bicarbonate) slowly while stirring to prevent vigorous reactions. Monitoring pH ensures safe disposal. Simply diluting or heating can be dangerous and noncompliant.
Which label color often indicates a flammable chemical hazard?
Blue
Red
Yellow
Green
Under NFPA and GHS labeling systems, red denotes flammability hazards. Blue indicates health hazards, yellow for reactivity, and green for general safety information. Proper labeling ensures safe handling and storage.
What risk arises from using scratched pipettes for volume measurements?
Inaccurate volume due to fluid adherence
No risk; scratches are cosmetic
Enhanced chemical purity
Increased evaporation rate
Scratches create sites where liquid can cling or bead irregularly, leading to inaccurate volume readings. Precise measurements are critical in experiments. Scratched glassware should be replaced to maintain accuracy.
Which method best detects tiny cracks in a graduated cylinder?
Tapping for sound only
Weighing empty
Visual inspection under bright light
Measuring pH
Shining bright light or backlighting the cylinder helps highlight fine cracks or hairline fractures. Visual inspection is quick and effective for small defects. Tapping may help but is less reliable alone.
Why is annealed glass typically more prone to breakage than tempered glass?
It has residual surface compression
It contains lead
It is made of soda - lime only
It has uniform internal stress
Annealed glass cools slowly, resulting in minimal internal stress differences. Tempered glass has surface compression and internal tension, making it stronger and more resistant to impact. Annealed glass thus fails more easily under stress.
What is the recommended maximum direct flame exposure for borosilicate glassware?
No more than a few seconds at the tip
It cannot be flame heated
Unlimited if cooled gradually
Continuous exposure at full flame
Borosilicate glass tolerates some direct flame but should only be exposed briefly at the flame's tip to avoid local overheating. Prolonged direct flame can cause thermal gradients and cracking. Use flame-resistant techniques and avoid high-temperature zones.
What mechanism drives crack propagation in glass under tensile stress?
Stress concentration amplifying at flaw sites
Magnetic field alignment
Plastic deformation at the crack tip
Chemical corrosion only
Glass fractures by stress concentration at microscopic flaws, which intensifies local stress and causes crack growth under tensile loading. Unlike metals, glass doesn't plastically deform, making flaw size critical. Reducing surface defects increases strength.
How does internal stress differ in tempered versus annealed glass?
Tempered glass has compressive surface stress and tensile core stress
Annealed glass has higher surface compression
Tempered glass is stress-free
Annealed glass has core compression
Tempering introduces surface compression with balancing tensile stress in the core, improving impact resistance. Annealed glass lacks this differential, making it weaker under mechanical or thermal shock. The stress profile determines failure behavior.
What is the disposal protocol for glass contaminated with dichromate?
Rinse and recycle with lab glass
Neutralize and pour down the drain
Autoclave and trash
Place in hazardous waste with proper labeling
Dichromate is a known carcinogen and oxidizer; contaminated glass is hazardous waste. It must be collected in a labeled hazardous waste container for proper disposal by licensed handlers. Routine rinsing and recycling are not permitted.
Which laboratory glass offers the highest resistance to strong alkalis?
Quartz (fused silica)
Lead crystal glass
Soda - lime glass
Borosilicate glass
Fused silica or quartz has exceptional chemical resistance, especially to strong alkalis that attack borosilicate. It is used in highly corrosive applications despite higher cost. Soda - lime and lead crystal are less resistant.
How is fracture toughness of lab glassware typically quantified?
Surface hardness scale
Thermal conductivity test
Stress intensity factor (KIC)
Young's modulus measurement
The critical stress intensity factor (KIC) measures the resistance of a material to crack propagation. It's the standard metric for fracture toughness. Higher KIC values indicate better resistance to crack growth.
Why are turbid or frosted cracks generally more dangerous than clear ones?
They indicate deeper, water-filled flaws
They are easier to polish out
They only occur on the exterior
They self-heal over time
Turbid or frosted cracks often signal subsurface damage with microvoids, making them more difficult to detect and more prone to rapid propagation. Clear surface scratches are superficial by comparison. Subsurface defects compromise overall strength.
What is the recommended inspection frequency for routinely used lab glassware?
When visibly dirty
Annually
Before each use
Every five uses
A visual and tactile inspection before each use ensures early detection of defects. Waiting for visible damage or fixed intervals can miss developing cracks. Consistent pre-use checks uphold safety and prevent laboratory incidents.
How does the modulus of rupture relate to glass safety?
It describes the glass's thermal expansion
It indicates the maximum tensile stress before failure
It is unrelated to mechanical strength
It measures resistance to deformation under heat
The modulus of rupture is the flexural strength indicating the maximum stress a material can withstand in bending before cracking. It helps predict failure when glassware is under load. Higher values denote safer, more robust glass.
What is a non-destructive method to evaluate internal flaws in glassware?
Heating until failure
X-ray or ultrasound inspection
Destructive tensile testing
Chemical etching
X-ray or ultrasonic testing can reveal subsurface cracks and voids without damaging the glassware. These NDE techniques allow for safe inspection of structural integrity. They are standard in high-stakes applications requiring faultless glass.
How do microcracks influence the fatigue life of glass under cyclic loading?
They have no influence; only macro defects matter
They act as stress concentrators and reduce fatigue life
They only affect thermal properties
They improve fatigue life by blunting other cracks
Microcracks concentrate stress at their tips during cyclic loading, promoting crack growth and reducing fatigue life. Even microscopic flaws can propagate under repeated stress cycles, leading to sudden failure. Understanding microcrack behavior is essential for predicting glassware lifespan.
Explain the significance of the Griffith criterion in glass failure analysis.
It determines glass solubility
It defines critical stress for crack propagation based on flaw size
It relates glass viscosity to temperature
It measures optical clarity
The Griffith criterion states that a crack will propagate when the energy release rate exceeds a critical value determined by flaw size and surface energy. It provides a theoretical basis for predicting fracture in brittle materials like glass. This model guides material selection and safety margins.
Which advanced NDE technique uses ultrasonics to locate internal flaws in glassware?
Shearography
Thermography
Liquid penetrant inspection
Phased-array ultrasonic testing
Phased-array ultrasonic testing employs multiple ultrasonic elements and timed pulses to create detailed images of internal flaws. It can detect and size subsurface cracks in glass without damage. This high-resolution technique is used in advanced material inspections.
How does surface compressive stress in tempered glass prevent crack initiation?
By aligning molecular chains
By counteracting tensile stresses at the surface
By reducing thermal conductivity
By increasing surface hardness only
Surface compressive stress balances and exceeds any external tensile forces, preventing cracks from opening. Any crack initiation must first overcome the compressive layer, increasing impact resistance. This is the fundamental reason tempered glass shatters safely.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Determine Glassware Safety -

    Decide when chipped or cracked glassware is okay to use versus when it must be removed from service to prevent injury or contamination.

  2. Distinguish Hot and Cold Glass -

    Assess whether hot glass looks the same as cold glass and apply proper checking techniques to avoid burns.

  3. Apply Chemical Waste Protocols -

    Follow correct procedures for "after completing an experiment all chemical waste should be" disposed of safely and in compliance with regulations.

  4. Handle Flammable Materials Safely -

    Implement best practices for working with flammable substances, including storage, transfer, and ignition control.

  5. Execute Emergency Steps -

    Recall and perform immediate actions for common lab emergencies, such as spills, fires, and injuries.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Inspecting Glassware Integrity -

    Chipped or cracked glassware is okay to use? Absolutely not: even a tiny nick can turn into a full break under heat or pressure. Follow NIH Lab Safety Guide recommendations to inspect every piece before and after use.

  2. Recognizing Hot vs. Cold Glass -

    Hot glass looks the same as cold glass. true false? Though it's a classic quiz twist, the correct answer is true. A common quiz question even asks "does hot glass looks the same as cold glass," so always assume it's hot and use thermal gloves or a probe (OSHA Heat Stress Guide).

  3. Chemical Waste Disposal Protocols -

    After completing an experiment all chemical waste should be labeled, segregated by hazard class, and placed in approved waste containers - never poured down the sink. Following EPA and university disposal rules prevents contamination and regulatory violations.

  4. Safe Handling of Flammable Substances -

    Know each substance's flash point and store flammables below that temperature in a fire cabinet. Use the mnemonic "Know Your Flash, Close the Cap" to keep vapors contained and reduce ignition risk (NFPA 45).

  5. Emergency Glass Breakage Response -

    For broken glassware, use a brush and dustpan - never your bare hands - to collect shards. If a chemical splash occurs, flush the area at an eyewash station or safety shower for at least 15 minutes (CDC Laboratory Safety Manual).

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