Laboratory Equipment and Supplies Flashcards
Type of glass that tolerates heat, sterilization but has low chemical resistance.
Borosilicate (Pyrex, Kimax)
Glass that is 6x stronger than borosilicate and resists scratches and alkali attack.
Aluminosilicate (Corex)
Glass with excellent heat, chemical, and electrical tolerance, used for drastic heat shock and acid/alkali treatment.
High Silica (Vycor)
Glass that melts when heated, is boron-free, and has high chemical resistance.
Soft glass
Most inexpensive glass that releases alkali, causing errors in tests.
Flint glass (soda lime glass)
Amber-colored glass used to reduce light transmission for photosensitive substances.
Low actinic glass
Plastic materials that are autoclavable.
Teflon, Polypropylene, Polycarbonate
Plastic with excellent temperature and chemical resistance.
Teflon
Plastic resistant to chemicals, tolerates heat, and is used for pipet tips and cryogenic storage.
Polypropylene
Plastic stronger than polypropylene but with lower chemical resistance, used for centrifuge tubes.
Polycarbonate
Non-autoclavable plastic materials.
Polyethylene, Polystyrene, Polyvinyl chloride
Plastic resistant to most chemicals except concentrated acids, used for alkaline solution storage.
Polyethylene
Rigid, clear plastic used for test tubes and graduated tubes.
Polystyrene
Soft, flexible, porous plastic often used as tubing.
Polyvinyl chloride
Pipette design that holds but does not deliver the exact volume.
To Contain (TC)
Pipette design that delivers the exact volume it holds.
To Deliver (TD)
Pipette with an etched ring or band near the mouth, requiring blow-out.
Blow-out pipette
Pipettes that drain by gravity.
Self-draining pipettes
Examples of pipettes designed to contain (TC).
Sahli pipette, Lang-Levy, Glass micropipettes
Pipette with a cylindrical bulb, single capacity, and self-draining for nonviscous samples.
Volumetric pipette
Pipette with an oval bulb, calibrated to contain (C.M) 1 mL, used for viscous fluids.
Ostwald-Folin pipette
Pipette graduated to the tip and requiring blow-out.
Serologic pipette
Pipette with point-to-point delivery, self-draining, and requires controlled drainage.
Mohr pipette
Uses of measuring/graduated pipettes.
Serial dilution; measuring reagents
Types of semi-automatic micropipettors.
Air displacement, Positive displacement
Micropipettor that uses suction with a disposable polypropylene tip and no piston contact with liquid.
Air displacement micropipettor
Micropipettor that operates like a syringe, with no air cushion and constant aspiration for viscous/high-density samples.
Positive displacement micropipettor
Components of an air displacement pipettor.
Piston with air cushion; disposable polypropylene tip
Components of a positive displacement pipettor.
Disposable piston, disposable capillary, disposable seal
Application of positive displacement micropipettor.
Discrete automated systems for viscous/high-density samples
Calibration frequency
Every 6 months
Gravimetric method
Weight of distilled water (d=1g/mL, 20°C) using analytical balance for accuracy
Spectrophotometric method
Absorbance of colored solution (K dichromate or p-nitrophenol) delivered
Horizontal or swinging bucket centrifuge
Max speed 3000 RPM, tubes horizontal during spinning, good for decantation
Fixed-angle centrifuge
Tubes at fixed angle, capable of up to 7000 RPM, less heat build-up
Ultracentrifuge
Up to 100,000 RPM, refrigerated for lipoprotein separation, gold standard
Cytocentrifuge
Used for body fluid cell counts, speed range 200-2000 RPM
Units used for centrifuge speed
RPM, RCF (g), Svedberg (S)
Formula to convert rpm to RCF
1.118 x 10^-5 x r (cm) x RPM
Centrifuge QC parameters
Timer, speed check, refrigerated centrifuge temp check using tachometer
Centrifuge calibration frequency
Every 3 months
Analytic Reagent Grade (ACS) chemicals
High purity suitable for most analytical procedures
Ultrapure Grades chemicals
Used for chromatography, AAS, immunoassays, molecular diagnostics
Chemically Pure Grade chemicals
Impurity limitations not stated, not suitable for research without further purification
USP/NF Grade chemicals
Used for drug manufacture, purity may not meet assay requirements
Technical/Commercial Grade chemicals
Not suitable for clinical laboratory use
Primary standard
Highly purified chemical with known concentration and purity
Secondary standard
Lower purity, concentration determined by comparison with primary standard or SRM
Max colony count (CFU/mL) Type I
<10
Max colony count (CFU/mL) Type II
<1000
Max colony count (CFU/mL) Type III
Not specified
pH of Type III
5.0 to 8.0
Silicate (mg/L SiO2) Type I
0.05
Silicate (mg/L SiO2) Type II
0.1
Silicate (mg/L SiO2) Type III
1
