There are several ironic and slightly funny lists of laboratory rules that have
more than a grain of truth in them. This image is only one of many circulating on the
internet as memes or cautionary tales. Think of it as a chemical take on Murphy’s
Laws. Two personal favourites are:
All unmarked beakers of any substance contain extremely fast-acting, toxic, and fatal poisons; and
Hot glass looks exactly the same as cold glass.
In the first case, of course, this is not always true, but it only has to be true once to kill you, so it makes sense to treat all of them that way. In the second case it’s a matter of noting that vision tells you nothing about the temperature of glass, thus inspiring people to use tongs or rubber grabbers for indeterminate objects to avoid injury.
This is the same logic that prevents us from wearing sandals in the lab, where dropped glassware could equate to a hospital visit. This is also why we don’t eat or drink in the lab where snacks could be easily contaminated with toxic substances, or contaminate your work rendering it useless.
Common Sense
So, what does that all boil down to? Everything in the lab has to be systematic and orderly. It must follow standards such as ISO 9001, where quality is assured because every single test and procedure has a very specific set of rules that are followed exactly each time. Consistency is essential to being a respected service provider.
Are You a Good Lab?
All it takes for a client to assure they’re dealing with a good lab, with solid processes that are consistent and reliable, is to create a test. With every batch you send in, you send one specifically designed tray of 100 samples where ordinary samples are interspersed with several identical samples (19 red ones in this image), and you check your results to see that all test samples give exactly the same number in the results sheet...
If you’re not convinced that your equipment could produce that result, it is time for you to move to BWB Flame Photometers. You need numbers that you can trust; that your customers can trust; especially if you’re going to be their go-to laboratory for testing.
Great Machines; Excellent Calibration Solutions
BWB has gone a step further by largely automating the set up process, too. This eliminates “human error” and makes the whole process quite fast. Our basic machines may require only one calibration standard solution. Our highest precision machines can use up to ten calibration standard solutions to provide an extremely accurate and reliable calibration curve.
You can make your own solutions!
The best choice is always to buy Highly Concentrated calibration solutions from BWB, supplied at 10,000 ppm solutions. This is not some casually obtained 1% solution, but rather a precision-made exact solution that is reliably that same, every single time.
Of course, 10,000 ppm solutions are not useful for direct testing, so you’ll need to make dilutions from the stock. Here is how you do it:
Calibration Solutions are stored in a cool, dark place in hermetic containers to prevent concentration through evaporation, or dilution through high ambient humidity. Get the stock solution you wish to prepare (e.g. Sodium). Never put anything into the source bottle, including syringes or siphons. Instead pour 10 ml of the solution into a clean beaker. Reseal the source bottle and put it safely back in storage.
Prepare as many 100 ml flasks as you will need for various dilutions. Your first dilution will be to 1,000 ppm so add 90 ml of De-Ionised water (DI) to the sample, and stir with a glass rod. This is your 1,000 ml solution. Label it 1000 ppm Na, or whatever is required by your lab.
Place 10 ml of this new solution into the next beaker, and add 90 ml of DI, stirring once again with a clean glass rod. This is you 100 ppm solution; label it 100 ppm Na.
Take 10 ml of this solution and place it in the next flask, and add 90 ml of DI, in the same way as previous steps. This dilution will be your 10 ppm Na solution, which you will label properly.
In the next beaker place 10 ml of the 10 ppm solution, and dilute with 90 ml of DI. Stir with a clean glass rod and label it as 1 ppm Na.
Obtaining any other PPM is simple. 250 ppm can be obtained by adding 25 ml of the 1,000 ppm to a flask and adding 75 ml of DI to create 100ml. Similarly, 5 ppm can be created with 10 ml of the 10 ppm solution and 10 ml of DI for 20ml of solution. This is very simple and straightforward maths that should confuse no one… For your convenience a quick and reliable calculator can be found here. [Editor’s note: Unless you have one on your website, which, if not, would be an excellent idea to keep your customers in touch with you on a regular basis]
Two More Caveats
Match the Chemistry
Your samples will seldom be presented in their pure form in uncontaminated distilled water. Solids may have been ashed in a furnace to release the interesting ions from biological matter. The remaining organic material was probably removed with assorted acids.
You’ll generally be informed that your sample has (for example) 3% Nitric Acid in it. Your task is to add nitric acid to your calibration solutions so that they are the same as your samples. This prevents crosstalk and/or ionic interference which are the consequences of poor calibrations that don’t match the test samples in basic chemistry. It assures accuracy in your results.
Low PPM Solutions
These do not store well. Never store low PPM solutions beyond overnight. The ions degrade too quickly to maintain accuracy. 1,000 ppm solutions are safe to store for a longer period of time. Feel free to ask one of our experts about the life expectancy of various concentrations.
The Takeaway
Reputations are earned based on accuracy, reliability, and consistency. Programmes like ISO 9001 tell your customers that you are among the best, differentiating you from your competitors. Good laboratory practices help to protect the environment, preserve or restore health, treat disease, engineer better, more durable products in the material sciences, grow healthier crops to feed millions, and so much more.
You may not know what the end result of your testing will be, but it is almost universally important, affecting lives, safety, food security, careers, and humanity itself. Don’t do it with second rate equipment. Call us today to see how BWB Flame Photometers can help you lead us into a secure, healthy, wealthy future! We would love to hear from you.
