[FeLiXe]

Hi, does anyone have any good tips on how to insulate the reaction apparatus, e.g. your column for rectification?

What I know you can do is wrapping paper towels and aluminum foil around it. Is there anything else that works well?

[movies]

We usually use cotton instead of paper towels.  If you need to heat something really hot, then usually wrapping with glass wool and aluminum foil is best.

[FeLiXe]

thanks

glass wool sounds cool. We have lots of that in the lab. I never thought about what it could be useful for.

[movies]

Just be sure to wear gloves when you handle glass wool.  It can give some nasty slivers.

You can also use glass wool for filtrations, but I tend to like cotton better because it seems to pack more tighly.