Very Simple DIY Glove Box

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Cost: ~$40
Time: ~1 hour

The argon cylinder I bought from my local AirGas branch - they have a 'showroom' you can just walk in and walk out with a tank of gas!

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As a mycologist, I've made several of these for working with spores and agar. My design is similar, but without gas holes as the intention for use in mycology is to create a "still air" environment, thus the abbreviation SAB (Still Air Box).
I also use the exact same Sterileite tub with gasket.
Good video. Cheers!

mycomachiavelli

Very nice video. I am trying to make a box which has a lid which needs to be opened/closed every time during the experiment. But I am facing leaking issues. The experiment has to be conducted in low humidity, less than 10%. For that, I am purging the box with dry nitrogen, but I am unable to maintain the desired humidity. It seems air from the ambient is leaking inside through the lid.

simrandeepbahal

I really like the idea of inert atmosphere box with the gas. That is good.

southpark

Hey! As a guy who's been using gloveboxes for a while (though never made one myself. Congrats on that one!), here's my advice:

You'll definitely need oxygen and moisture absorbents. Without the ability to do vacuum/argon cycles, purging alone won't get you anywhere without expending cubic meters of argon. (And your argon likely contains some oxygen and moisture to begin with).

Zeolite is the best moisture absorbent for that. Luckily, it can be easily bought online. Don't forget to dry it beforehand by heating it up above 300°C (A good oven can do that, otherwise I guess a saucepan and gentle heating could also possibly do). Then, keep it in a container, sealed from moisture while it cools, until it is in your glovebox and ready to be used. (one of those glass pots with a rubber ring for preserves is the best I can think of, but there may be a bunch of alternatives for that)

You'll also need an oxygen scavenger, and that will be harder to find. Were I work, we use some copper oxide deposited on high surface-area alumina, which we regenerate by heating it at 300°C in a flow of hydrogen (that way we can regenerate both the zeolite and oxygen scavenger in one go!). Perhaps "pyrophoric iron" (Iron II oxide, made by thermally decomposing iron II oxalate to FeO and CO) could do. (the standard iron powder/sodium chloride scavengers used in food packaging won't do, as they require some moisture to work).

Once you have proper scrubbers, you'll obviously have to get the argon moving through or over them. I guess spreading them in trays and moving your gloves around for a few minutes could cause enough drafts.

Also, don't trust those supposedly airtight foam joints. They're airtight enough for storing food, but not for air-sen chemistry. You could probably mitigate that by keeping your box under constant argon overpressure, though it may slightly hinder your dexterity with those gloves.

Oh, and on a side note, you could cut a piece of the plastic on the side of your box and epoxy a glass window on it. That way, we'll get much nicer camera views!

I hope this is helpful, best of luck!

piranha

next should be a fume hood! Awesome video!

KyleMakeStuff

just asking if it would be better to use the clamp on the outside of the box? less things to sterilize.

tomwalzem

Attach a pressure gauge to your box and evacuate the ambient air as much as possible before pumping the Argon inside. The pressure gauge will help you determine when the box returns to atmospheric pressure while filling it with Argon. This will ensure an improved Argon concentration inside the box. I would also recommend applying a resin sealant to the foam lid sealant already installed on the box to better prevent Argon/ambient air transfer. This same sealant could be applied to the periphery of your glove connections to the box. Thank you for this video!

stevenunrast

try wearing another set of gloves maybe latex or cotton so you can take your hands out quicker and prevent bacteria growing in the gloves from your sweat

peterfixit

that foam seal looks a bit dinky, if you're interested in improving that I can recommend rtv silicone. you can squeeze it into the gaps, let it cure, and you have a custom sized silicone gasket

robmckennie

Hey, tip for the drill bit. I cracked like 2 monotubs before i tried going slowly, that way it doesnt cut completely through but just about. Then you take a single edge razor and its so easy to cut it put perfectly. Then use a bit of sandpaper if you want

rmbassett

I emptied out a can of food almost the exact size needed for arm holes, heated it on the stove, melted the holes and wiggled it around for a perfect melted cut!

Enderchats

Very nice project! Looking forward to more videos. Lithium sounds like a fantastic subject to cover.

area

Teflon tape man! Get that GOOD SEAL. Also many good comments below!

SupremeScience

Nice project - I'm looking forward to seeing it in use!

My suggestions for improvement would be to first, maintain a positive pressure of argon into the box when you're using it. That way any leaks will be just argon out, rather than air in.

I'm not sure how useful this one would be, but it might be a good idea to add a check valve to the output port. That way even with a low flow rate of argon, air won't flow back in easily.

Minifig