Mortars and Pestles
Tools used to grind and crush substances into fine powders or pastes, Mortars are bowl-shaped containers and pestles are heavy, rod-shaped tools. Commonly sold as sets but also available separately, mortar and pestle sets may include mortars, pestles, adapters, housings, or other items in several materials.
Mortar and pestle implements have been used since ancient times to crush and grind substances. Mortars can be made of hard materials like wood, metal, ceramic, or hard stone such as granite or marble. Pestles are held in the hand and usually have a tapered, club-like shape. A wet or dry substance is placed in the mortar and the pestle is pressed against it and rotated until the material is pulverized.
What Is the Best Material for a Mortar and Pestle?
The implements must be made of materials that are hard enough to crush the substance without wearing away, but they cannot be brittle or break from the pressure of manipulation. The material should also be cohesive to reduce chipping and non-porous to avoid absorbing or trapping substances. Some rough porcelain mortars and pestles can reduce substances to very fine powders, but are brittle and stain more easily. Porcelain mortars can be pre-conditioned by grinding sand in them to produce a rougher surface. Glass mortars and pestles are stain-resistant and suitable for liquids, but are fragile and do not grind as finely as ceramic sets. Metal mortars and pestles are popular for food preparation.
Mortars and pestles are commonly used to grind and mix substances for dilution, to mask negative qualities, or to add volume to facilitate handling. Drugs can also be finely ground when not available in liquid form, and supplements can be processed to for addition to parenteral nutrition.
Chemplex Industries BALL PESTLES PLASTIC 5MM
CHEMPLEX BALL PESTLES: FOR SPECTROVIALS(TM) Comminution Vials, Methylmethacrylate; Plastic; 5mm
Chemplex Industries BALLPESTLES TUNGCARBIDE 8MM
CHEMPLEX BALL PESTLES: FOR SPECTROVIALS(TM) Comminution Vials, Tungsten Carbide; 6 units per package, 8mm
Chemplex Industries BALL PESTLES SS 7MM
CHEMPLEX BALL PESTLES: FOR SPECTROVIALS(TM) Comminution Vials, Stainless Steel, 7mm
Perkin Elmer US LLC Agate Pestle and Mortar Set
This set ships with the General Purpose IR Sampling Kits (51007739/L1365312) and the Liquid and Mull IR Sampling Kit (51008709/L1365311). With this part number, it can be ordered as a replacement or spare set.
Sigma Aldrich Fine Chemicals Biosciences Pellet pestles Cordless mo1EA
Z359955 will fit the cordless motor product Z359971 only by using the replacement adapter for the motor Z359998 which is purchased separately.
Research Products International Corp Micro-Tube Sample Pestles for 1.5ml Tubes, RNase and DNase Free, 100 per Package
Ideal for manually homogenizing cells and resuspending proteins or DNA pellets in buffers. Polypropylene and autoclavable.
Pestle only for 1.5ml tubes.
Sigma Aldrich Fine Chemicals Biosciences CoorsTM porcelain mortar O1EA
Mortar with lip glazed outside except for bottom. Order pestle separately.
New England Biolabs, Inc. Monarch® Pestle Set - 100 sets
The Monarch Pestle Set contains single-use microtube pestles and the accompanying 1.5 ml tubes for sample disruption and homogenization prior to nucleic acid extraction. 100 green pestles and 100 tubes are included in this set.
- Set includes Monarch Pestles and Monarch Pestle Tubes
- Optimally designed for manual homogenization of tissue samples prior to nucleic acid extraction
- Single-use pestles and tubes