# Work top material for fume hood



## Anonymous (Sep 2, 2009)

What's the best work top material there is for fume hood? Something that is resistant to AR in case of spill etc. Would phenolic resin suffice? Is there any better cheaper materials that work just as well? 

I'm assuming I should just rule out Stainless steel, am i right? Also I've been getting a lot of offers for fume hoods with special HPL sheet (Acid Resistant). Im just wondering how acid resistant these hpl sheet really are. Can it withstand AR spill? 

Also, I been looking into this perchloric acid stainless steel fume hood which costs relatively cheap. It's made out of full stainless steel body and cabinet and uses stainless steel 316 for work table material. But then I thought AR dissolves stainless steel. So I run a search on this specific material and found this http://www.fanagalo.co.za/tech/tech_grade_316.htm scroll down to 4.1. How reliable is this data? Should I even consider to buy this fume hood? I'm worried it's gonna collapse right after some AR spill on the work table.


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## Noxx (Sep 2, 2009)

Well, I used melamine boards (white)... Might not be the best choice but at least it's cheap and spill proof.


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## Palladium (Sep 2, 2009)

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=61082-46498-31023248&lpage=none


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## Anonymous (Sep 3, 2009)

thx


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## EDI Refining (Sep 3, 2009)

A good/pricey option is : granite countertop


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## Harold_V (Sep 4, 2009)

P3M said:


> A good/pricey option is : granite countertop


I'd give that idea a lot of thought when you consider that you are using vessels that break easily. A hard rock surface isn't in anyone's best interest. 

Harold


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## rainmaker (Sep 4, 2009)

I have found a regular kitchen top laminate surface to very acid resistant, even to boiling AR as long as you are paying attention to your process and don't let spills set for prolonged periods of time.

rainmaker


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## goldsilverpro (Sep 4, 2009)

You're right. The kitchen laminate material holds up very well. It will discolor, though, especially from silver nitrate and gold chloride solutions.

One refinery I worked at had acid-proof tile (and, mortar) on the floor and walls. That could be used as a work surface but, like Harold said about granite, it could be hard on beakers.


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## Lou (Sep 5, 2009)

Slate or soapstone both work nicely.

If one has the money, the black epoxy countertops are the best.


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## rainmaker (Sep 8, 2009)

granite, slate, etc.. Most any natural material will be porous and the random mixing of various spilled chemicals could lead to serous problems. You might be able to seal them with a acid resistant epoxy of some sort.

Rainmaker


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## dick b (Sep 8, 2009)

Hello:

I still think that using a poly catch tray under your reactions is the best idea. It will lessen the possbility of glass breakage and will serve as a recepticle to catch spills from broken vessels. It will last long enough to safely clean up the spill and most chemicals will not damage it. If your using an open flame for heating, then a heat resistant material can be placed into the tray (fire brick, quarry tile, etc) to keep heat from setting the plastic on fire. The smaller the area that the spill can be contained in, the easier it will be to clean up. Safety first!

Just my two pennies worth.

dickb


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