Action photo of nasal spray on a black background

A spray bottle is a

bottle A bottle is a narrow-necked container made of an impermeable material (such as glass, plastic or aluminium) in various shapes and sizes that stores and transports liquids. Its mouth, at the bottling line, can be sealed with an internal ...

that can squirt, spray or mist fluids.

History

While spray bottles existed long before the middle of the 20th century, they used a

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...

bulb which was squeezed to produce the spray; the quickly-moving air siphoned fluid from the bottle. The rapid improvement in

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

s after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

increased the range of fluids that could be dispensed, and reduced the cost of the sprayers because assembly could be fully automated. The Drackett company, manufacturers of Windex glass cleaner, was a leader in promoting spray bottles. Roger Drackett raised soybeans, converted the soybeans to plastic using technology purchased from

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American Technological and industrial history of the United States, industrialist and business magnate. As the founder of the Ford Motor Company, he is credited as a pioneer in making automob ...

, and was an investor in the Seaquist company, an early manufacturer of sprayers and closures. Initially, the brittle nature of early plastics required that sprayers be packaged in a cardboard box, and the sprayer inserted in the glass Windex bottle by the consumer. The cost in the manufacturing sprayers was also a factor; consumers would reuse the sprayers with bottle after bottle of glass cleaner. As plastics improved and the cost of sprayers dropped, manufacturers were able to ship products with the sprayer already in the bottle. In the late 1960s, spray bottles with trigger-style actuators appeared and quickly became popular, as this design was less fatiguing to use. The original pump-style bottle remained more popular for applications like non-

aerosol An aerosol is a suspension (chemistry), suspension of fine solid particles or liquid Drop (liquid), droplets in air or another gas. Aerosols can be generated from natural or Human impact on the environment, human causes. The term ''aerosol'' co ...

deodorant A deodorant is a substance applied to the body to prevent or mask body odor caused by bacterial breakdown of perspiration, for example in the armpits, groin, or feet. A subclass of deodorants, called antiperspirants, prevents sweating itself, t ...

s, where size was a factor and repeated pumps were not required.

Modern spray bottles

Unlike the rubber bulb dispenser which primarily moved air with a small amount of fluid, modern spray bottles use a positive displacement pump that acts directly on the fluid. The pump draws liquid up a

siphon A siphon (; also spelled syphon) is any of a wide variety of devices that involve the flow of liquids through tubes. In a narrower sense, the word refers particularly to a tube in an inverted "U" shape, which causes a liquid to flow upward, abo ...

tube from the bottom of the bottle and forces it through a

nozzle A nozzle is a device designed to control the direction or characteristics of a fluid flow (specially to increase velocity) as it exits (or enters) an enclosed chamber or pipe (material), pipe. A nozzle is often a pipe or tube of varying cross ...

. Depending on the sprayer, the nozzle may or may not be adjustable, so as to select between squirting a stream,

izing a mist, or dispensing a spray. In a spray bottle, the dispensing is powered by the user's efforts, as opposed to the spray can, in which the user simply actuates a valve and product is dispensed under pressure. Several designs have been developed. Some of the pumping mechanisms of spray bottles are similar to those of pump dispensers which are used for more viscous products.

Examples

File:My dna fragrance exclusive perfume-2.jpg, An aluminum bottle with spray attachment File:PakTechTK.jpg, Two spray bottles clipped together File:Dry Season (6195644129).jpg, Water spray File:Plastic bottle with hose spray attachment.jpg, Lawn spray bottle with hose attachment BECONASE nasal spray.JPG,

Nasal spray Nasal sprays are used to deliver medications Route of administration#Local, locally in the nasal cavities or systemic administration, systemically. They are used locally for conditions such as nasal congestion and allergic rhinitis. In some sit ...

Perfume set from Sovjetunio cca 1965.jpg,

Perfume Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

atomizer

References

* Yam, K. L., "Encyclopedia of Packaging Technology", John Wiley & Sons, pp 275–276, 2009, * Soroka, W, "Fundamentals of Packaging Technology", IoPP, 2002,

Standards,
ASTM International ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is a standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical international standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems and s ...

*D3890 Standard Test Method for Number of Strokes to Prime a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D4041 Standard Practice for Determining Spray Patterns of Mechanical Pump Dispensers *D4333 Test Method for the Compatibility of Mechanical Pump Dispenser Components *D4334 Standard Test Method for the Determination of the Dip Tube Retention of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D4335 Standard Test Method for Determination of Component Retention of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D4336 Standard Test Methods for Determination of the Output Per Stroke of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D6534 Standard Test Method for Determining the Peak Force-to-Actuate a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D6535 Standard Test Method for Determining the Dip Tube Length of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D6536 Standard Test Method for Measuring the Dip Tube Length of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D6633 Standard Test Method for Basic Functional Stability of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser *D6654 Standard Test Method for Basic Storage Stability of a Mechanical Pump Dispenser

External links

* {{Packaging Bottles fr:Pulvérisateur ru:Пульверизатор