Glove boxes allow the manipulation of materials under an alternative atmosphere. These are typically inert gases such as nitrogen or argon. Predominantly the exclusion of water and oxygen from highly reactive compounds is the key purpose of a glove box.

Glove boxes are principally a large box which is connected to a pump and gas inlet, much in the same manner as a Schlenk line operates. The entire box can be emptied of any atmospheric air, and the box refilled with an inert gas. Catalysts are used to maintain the atmosphere in the box, with careful monitoring of water and oxygen levels.

Entry port

Glove boxes are usually fitted with one or more ports where items to be introduced or removed from a glove box via an air lock. Often multiple ports of different sizes are included, for moving items such as chemical reagents, spatulas, gloves and tissues etc in and out of the box. The relevant item(s) to enter the glovebox are placed into the air lock, which is then evacuated and refilled multiple times, before accessing from inside the glovebox. For items exiting, there is no need to purge, as these will be entering the atmosphere on exit.

The most common use of glove boxes is for the keeping and weighing of compounds which would not be able to be handled under atmospheric air. These include pyrophoric compounds (e.g. Lithium aluminium hydride powder) and rapidly oxidisable compounds (e.g. tricyclohexanephosphine) or hygroscopic compounds.

Compounds are often weighed out and placed into Schlenk tubes, which can then be removed from the glove box without exposing the contents to air. These flasks and contents can then be manipulated using a Schlenk line to carry out reactions.