crucible

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crucible vessel in which a substance is heated to a high temperature, as for fusing or calcining. The necessary properties of a crucible are that it maintain its mechanical strength and rigidity at high temperatures and that it not react in an undesirable way with its contents. Porcelain , iron, and platinum are used in the lab; graphite is usually used in industry, but firebrick is also used, especially when vessels of large capacity are needed. The chamber at the bottom of a metal-refining furnace, where the molten metal collects to be drawn off, is known as a crucible.

cru·ci·ble / ˈkroōsəbəl/ • n. a ceramic or metal container in which metals or other substances may be melted or subjected to very high temperatures. ∎  a place or occasion of severe test or trial. ∎  a place or situation in which different elements interact to produce something new.

crucible vessel for fusing metals. XV (early forms corusible, kressibulle). — medL. crucibulum night-lamp, crucible, f. L. crux, cruc- CROSS 1; perh. orig. lamp hanging before a crucifix.

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