National Bunsen Burner Day
National Bunsen Burner Day:
Bunsen Burner Day honors Robert Wilhelm Eberhard von Bunsen’s birthday on 31 March each year. The Bunsen Burner was Robert Bunsen’s most significant contribution that changed the chemistry labs worldwide.
| Year | Date | Day | Where |
| 2023 | 31st March | Friday | United States |
| 2024 | 31st March | Sunday | United States |
| 2025 | 31st March | Monday | United States |
Twitter Hashtags:
#NationalBunsenBurnerDay
#BunsenBurnerDay
Related: Other National Days Celebrated on March 31st:
National Clams on the Half Shell Day
Why Bunsen Burner Day?
Came in 1854 with the need for a cleaner and hotter flame that could help in laboratory experiments, the Bunsen Burner was invented. The University employed Robert Bunsen in 1852. He was vowed to construct a new laboratory house, complete with the latest scientific wonders, streetlights, coal-gas that were just started to install in the city. The burners currently being used in chemistry labs were not efficient for the tasks being performed, leaving them soot smeared and unable to generate necessary heat and control for various experiments.
Thus, Robert Bunsen had several common ideals with Peter Desaga and felt a modern burner should be built. Peter Desaga applied these ideas for a modern laboratory burner concept. He developed an instrument that would create a hot sootless fire with little to none additional light. Then the Bunsen Burner was born, which became extremely successful in serving its design purpose and has been so popular that laboratories worldwide use them ever since.
The equipment is a standard part of laboratory equipment named after a renowned scientist Robert Bunsen, which produces a single open gas flame. Various applications such as heating, combustion, and sterilization are made through the Bunsen burner. The gas may be either natural gas (typically methane) or a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) like propane, butane, or a combination of both.
The Bunsen burner development opened up new possibilities for the use of natural gas. The Bunsen burner can be used in schools and labs worldwide as a standard chemical instrument. For six months, most students are familiar with the use of the Bunsen burner.
How Can We Observe Bunsen Burner Day?
In studying the lives, times, and achievements of Robert Bunsen and all of his contributions to society, Bunsen Burner Day is best observed by everyday people like us (and, of course, those who practice chemistry). You can begin by looking at the Bunsen Burner concept and how it could revolutionize how laboratory experiments were performed by introducing such a device. If you are a student or an instructor, promote this day to celebrate by demonstrating the Bunsen Burner and performing experiments, particularly those that are not possible without it.
Share your experiences using the Bunsen burner from the chemistry class or the laboratory. Give your favorite research professor or laboratory buddy a shout out. You can also share your experiences and learnings by using the Bunsen burner. You can learn and explore more about Robert Bunsen; his work and his life are also available. Examine the major flame types created and the meaning of colors they emit from the Bunsen burner. You can also explore how the Bunsen Burner hit the temperature and how it impacts the experiments?
You post your photos on your social media handles with your lab mates and professors using hashtags #NationalBunsenBurnerDay and #BunsenBurnerDay.
Interesting Facts on National Bunsen Burner Day:
- Although Bunsen published his invention, he never patented the Bunsen burner because he never wanted any financial gains from society for using it.
- Many years after he was a graduate student, Bunsen would condemn science education and say, “In my day, we studied science and not, as now so often happens, only one of them.”
- Bunsen has even been publishing other vital works such as an antidote to arsenic poisoning before he even considered publishing his production of the Bunsen Burner.
It is said that after an incident in which he was poisoned, this antidote would later save Bunsen’s life.
- Bunsen’s habit was to assign a scientific job to his students and then work with a student only as long as it took to reach independence. Two of its more famous students are Bunsen’s most famous ones.
- He was loved by many of his students and peers, and today in a collection called “Bunseniana,” there are anecdotes of his life.
- Bunsen being one of the most influential chemists in the world, was passionate about geology. He would spend the rest of his time after retirement by keeping up with geological developments.
- In 2011, it was Bunsen’s 200th birth anniversary.
- He was one of the most outstanding scientists of his time and was awarded the 1860 Nobel Prize equivalent, the Copley Medal of the British Royal Society.
History of National Bunsen Burner Day:
There’s an image we all have of a laboratory, a white coat, safety glasses, and a glistening beaker with a spear of a blue flame that appears omnipresent to every chemical laboratory. The Bunsen Burner Day observes the history and the man who created something that changed the way we performed experiments.
