2022 is the United Nations International Year of Glass, celebrating the role of this material in our societies. The transformation of humble substances into something beautiful and precious, glass represents one of the most mesmerizing of man-made materials. Its properties puzzled natural philosophers since its inception, while the chemical reactions behind its colour changes formed the basis of the emerging alchemical discipline, in the 3<sup>rd</sup> century AD. But on top of being a wonder, glass also established itself as an ideal material in al/chemical operations, and glass distillation vessels eventually became the most iconic of laboratory apparatus. This paper explores the dynamic relationship between glass and chemistry in the early modern period, and it does so by telling two stories, seemingly distant but connected through glass. It will move between an alchemical laboratory in 16<sup>th</sup>-century Austria, where minerals were tested, and the basement laboratory at London’s Royal Institution, where Michael Faraday experimented with glass making in the 1820s. Making use of material and documentary evidence, the paper exposes how glass was both a carrier of chemical knowledge and the key tool through which more knowledge could be built, reinforcing once again its pivotal role in the history of chemistry.

Glass for chemistry and the chemistry of glass: A kaleidoscopic story

Fall 2022 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch in mid-September.

ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.