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What is the optimal amount of water to clean a glass jar? part 2

There are lessons to be learned from how chemists wash reaction products, explains one reader.

Lewis O鈥橲haughnessy
Nottingham, UK

The exact volume required will depend on what is being washed out of the jar 鈥 vinegar is easier to remove than jam, which, in turn, is easier than peanut butter. But, if the aim is to reduce the amount of water used, an easy method is to do several repeat washes, each with less water, rather than a single wash with a larger volume. Two washes of 100 millilitres are more effective than one wash of 200 ml. Chemists use this approach regularly when washing reaction products, and also use a similar approach of 鈥渨ashing鈥 the air with nitrogen to remove oxygen from a reaction vessel.

To answer this question 鈥 or ask a new one 鈥 email lastword@newscientist.com.

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