Why Not Purchase Some Osmium Tetroxide?

Osmium tetroxide has many practical uses in chemistry, but due to its volatile nature it should be handled with care. Osmium tetroxide is used in many chemical processes such as organic synthesis, biological staining, polymer staining, Osmeth, and Osmium ore refining. One major quality about Osmium tetroxide is that it is soluble in most organic solvents and is moderately soluble in water. With so many uses why wouldn't you buy some? For the modest price of just over $300/gram!

Avoid ingestion, eye contact, and skin contact. Proper safety procedures are necessary for safe use. Prices are according to set prices on sciencelab.com

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The Many Uses of Osmium Tetroxide

• Osmium tetroxide is used in organic synthesis to oxidize alkenes.
• Osmium tetroxide is used in biological staining as a staining agent for transmission electron microscopy to provide contrast. It is also used as a lipid stain in scanning electron microscopy.
• In polymer staining, Osmium tetroxide is used to stain copolymers.
• To store Osmium tetroxide without it emitting toxic fumes, Osmium tetroxide can be complexed with hexamine to form Osmeth. Osmeth is a golden colored solid that is not volatile unlike Osmium tetroxide. A working solution can be made from the Osmeth through diluting the substance.
• Osmium tetroxide can be refined through several chemical processes to form pure Osmium.

WARNING

• Due to the high toxicity of Osmium tetroxide, it should be handled with care.
• Even at very low exposure levels it can be very dangerous.
• Inhalation of Osmium tetroxide can cause pulmonary edema, possibly resulting in death.
• Symptoms can take hours to appear after exposure.
• Osmium tetroxide can stain the human cornea and cause blindness.
• Osmium tetroxide should be stored in glass containers because it can penetrate plastics.