desiccator

[ des-i-key-ter ]

noun

1. an apparatus for drying fruit, milk, etc.
2. Chemistry.
   1. an apparatus for absorbing the moisture present in a chemical substance.
   2. an airtight, usually glass container containing calcium chloride or some other drying agent for absorbing the moisture of another substance placed in the container.

desiccator

/ ˈdɛsɪˌkeɪtə /

noun

1. any apparatus for drying milk, fruit, etc
2. an airtight box or jar containing a desiccant, used to dry chemicals and protect them from the water vapour in the atmosphere

Word History and Origins

Origin of desiccator¹

First recorded in 1830–40; desiccate + -or ²

Example Sentences

Sections were vacuum dried in a desiccator before analysis.

From Nature

Reactions at room temperature have an entirely different behaviour in a tropical environment at 34 °C than in one where the normal temperature is around 25 °C. By using dry reagents stored in a desiccator, we kept protocols portable and stable.

From Nature

But two new treatments — one a mechanical desiccator, the other a potion whose secret ingredient is a lowly bacterium discovered in an abandoned Caribbean rum still — mean that high-priced hand picking has some serious competition.

From Time

The residue is then subjected to a second baking of one hour, after which the dish is allowed to cool in a desiccator over sulphuric acid and weighed.

From Project Gutenberg

After ignition, it is allowed to cool in a desiccator and then weighed.

From Project Gutenberg