Andre Smith

September 30, 2015

FST 101A-A06, Wednesday 9 AM
RH
LAB 1 Volumetric Sampling
I. Purpose/Objective
The purpose of this activity is to become familiar with accuracy and precision and
using Volumetric, Mohr, Serological and Mechanical pipettes.
II. Introduction
Pipetting and knowing what pipette to use is important for food science as well as
many other disciplines in the fields of biology and chemistry. In research, using
appropriate pipetting techniques is important for comparing the sweetness of two
products and in industry, precision is important to produce identical products.
TD, or To Deliver, pipettes are designed to deliver their contents without
blowing out any more liquid. TC, or To Contain, pipettes are not designed to
deliver their contents without blowing out all of the liquid within them.
Volumetric pipettes are TD pipettes that are made from glass, allowing them to
contain both aqueous and organic liquids. They are characterized by a bulge labeled
with the pipettes total volume. Fluid should be drawn up until the meniscus of the
liquid rests on the engraved ring above the bulge.
Mohr pipettes are also TD pipettes. Mohr pipettes are graduated, allowing a range
of volumes to be drawn and dispensed. They are less accurate than volumetric
pipettes because you must read the top and the bottom of the meniscus. They are
made of glass just like volumetric pipettes and are characterized by a single stripe by
the bulb end of the pipette.
Serological pipettes are graduated TC pipettes and have a double line mark at the
bulb end. They can be made of plastic for a lower cost but can have an increased
functionality if purchased in the glass form. Both forms are considered to be
disposable.
Mechanical pipettes are also TC pipettes. They come in a variety of sizes and
the appropriate size is selected based on how much liquid is to be drawn and
 dispensed. The largest mechanical pipette delivers 1000 microliters or 1 ml. The
volume can be set by turning the knob near the top of the pipette. To dispense liquid
from a mechanical pipette and press the plunger down to the first stop, then press
down to the second stop to dispense the remainder of the sample.
III. Procedure
The procedure for Lab 1 is found in Principles of Food Composition, Laboratory
Manual, FS&T 101A (2015) page 10.
IV. Data
Table 1: Group Nines experimental data with means, standard deviations, coefficient
of variation and relative percent error.
Volumetric (ml) Mohr (ml) Serological (ml) Mechanical (ml) Mechanical (ml)
10 ml 10 ml 10 ml P200, P1000,
0.1 ml 0.5 ml
9.9681 10.0451 10.0671 0.0991 0.5000
9.9458 9.9316 10.0338 0.0914 0.4993
9.9350 9.9548 10.0275 0.0958 0.4990
Mean: 9.9496 Mean: 9.9548 Mean: 10.0428 Mean: 0.0954 Mean: 0.4994
Std Dev: 0.01688 Std Dev: 0.05966 Std Dev: 0.02128 Std Dev: 3.86 x10-3 Std Dev: 5.10 x10-4
CV: 0.1697 CV: 0.5993 CV: 0.2119 CV: 4. 046 CV: 0.1021
% Error: -0.504 % Error: -0.452 % Error: 0.428 % Error: -4.60 % Error: -0.120
 Table 2: Class data mean results for pipette exercise including calculated means,
standard deviations, coefficient of variations, and relative % error for each pipette.
Group # Volumetric (g) Mohr (g) Serological (g) Mechanical P200 (g) Mechanical P1000 (g)
1 9.977 9.9338 10.007 0.0973 0.4997
2 9.9686 9.9833 9.9834 0.099 0.5005
3 10.0106 10.0735 10.016 0.0994 0.5073
4 9.9897 9.9851 10.0147 0.1007 0.4968
5 9.939 9.939 10.012 0.098 0.5019
6 9.9335 9.891 9.991 0.09957 0.4998
7 9.9869 9.9487 9.999 0.09873 0.5017
8 9.8972 9.949 10.0197 0.0975 0.4985
9 9.9446 9.9772 10.0428 0.0954 0.4994
10 9.9707 9.9666 10.0486 0.0997 0.4994
11 9.9415 9.9775 9.984 0.0983 0.4986
12 9.9906 9.9281 10.028 0.0968 0.4934
MEAN 9.9625 9.9627 10.0122 0.0984 0.4998
STD DEV 3.1869E-02 4.4483E-02 2.1027E-02 1.4633E-03 3.2773E-03
CV 0.3199 0.4465 0.2100 1.4876 0.6558
% ERROR 0.3751 0.3727 -0.1218 1.6333 0.0500

V. Calculations
Calculating mean (average):
Using Group Nines data for the volumetric pipette, calculating the mean of the trials can
be done by adding all 3 numbers together and dividing by the sample size.
9.9681 + 9.9458 + 9.9350 = 9.9446
3
Calculating sample standard deviation:
Once the mean has been calculated, the standard deviation can begin to be calculated by
subtracting the mean from each number in the data set.
9.9681-9.9446= 0.0185
9.9458-9.9496= -3.80x10-3
9.9350-9.9496= -0.0146
Square each of the differences
(0.0185)2 =3.4225x10-4
(-3.80x10-3)2 =1.444x10-5
 (-0.0146)2 =2.136x10-4
Add the squared numbers together and divide by n-1. In this case, 3-1=2. Then, take the
square root of the resulting number to calculate sample standard deviation.
3.4225x10-4 + 1.444x10-5 + 2.136x10-4 = 2.84925 x 10-4
2
2.84925 10-4 = 0.01688

Calculating Coefficient of Variation (Relative Standard Deviation)

Standard deviation *100
Mean
Using Group Nines data for the volumetric pipette:
0.01688 *100 = 0.1697
9.9496

Calculating Relative Percent Error

(Observed Value True Value) *100
True Value
Using Group Nines Data for the volumetric pipette:
(9.9496 g 10.000 g) *100 = -0.504%
10.000 g

VI. Results/Discussion
According to the lab manual, volumetric pipettes are designed to be the most accurate
pipettes to deliver a certain volume of liquid. Group Nines data is inconsistent with this
claim as it had the highest absolute relative percent error. Group Nines data showed that
although the volumetric pipette had the lowest accuracy, it had the highest precision
according to the coefficient of variation values. Because the lab manual claims that the
volumetric pipette is the most accurate pipette, it is possible that the error came from the
pipette itself or from the human using the pipette due to the high precision for the
volumetric pipette trials. The most accurate 10 ml pipette for Group Nine was the
 serological pipette, then the Mohr pipette, followed by the volumetric pipette. This was
determined by observing the absolute relative percent errors for each 10 ml pipette.
Group Nines data showed that the P1000 mechanical pipette had more accurate
results than the P200 mechanical pipette. The P200 pipette had a drastically larger
coefficient of variation and percent error. It is possible that the P1000 pipette had a
smaller percent error because there is more liquid being drawn and dispensed and any
error accounts for a smaller percentage of the volume.
The class data also shows that the serological pipette had the most accurate results,
followed by the Mohr and volumetric pipettes, further countering the claim in the lab
manual that the volumetric and Mohr pipettes are designed to be more accurate. The class
data shows that the most precise results for the 10 ml pipettes also came from the
serological pipettes, then Mohr pipettes, then the volumetric pipettes. Its possible that
some groups within the class did not understand the concept of TD and TC pipettes and
either blew out the contents of TD pipettes or retained the leftover contents of the TC
pipettes, thus contributing the varied accuracy and precision results.
The class data was consistent with Group Nines data for the mechanical pipettes. The
P1000 mechanical pipette had much smaller values for both coefficient of variation and
relative percent error, fortifying the claim that the amount of water being drawn and
dispensed can play a role in the precision and accuracy of a pipette.
VII. Conclusion
Pipetting is an important basic ability in science as many experiments rely on accurate
measurements that can be performed multiple times with precision. In this exercise, we
saw that accuracy can be obtained more easily when dealing with larger volumes of
substance. Some pipettes are designed to be more accurate than others, but in this
experiment we saw that this can vary and certain reliable pipettes may not be as
accurate as we think they are.
VIII. Questions
1. Which 10 ml pipette gave the best accuracy? Precision?
In both the individual group data and the class data, the serological pipette proved to be
the most accurate 10 ml pipette. In Group Nines data, the volumetric pipette was the
most precise, but in the class data, the serological pipette was the most precise.
2. Which mechanical pipette gave the best accuracy? Precision?
In both the class data and individual group data, the P1000 mechanical pipette was both
the most accurate and precise. This can be due to the fact that the P1000 pipette draws
and dispenses more water.
3. Comparing the 10 ml pipettes to the mechanical pipettes, which gave the better accuracy?
Precision?
Group Nines data shows that the P1000 pipette was the most accurate and precise of all
the pipettes because of its low percent error and coefficient of variation, despite the fact
that it draws and dispenses less water than the 10 ml pipettes. It is difficult to say that the
mechanical pipettes are more accurate and precise than the 10 ml pipettes because the
P200 mechanical pipette has a much larger coefficient of variation and percent error than
the 10 ml pipettes.
The class data shows that the P1000 mechanical pipette was the most accurate out of all
the pipettes. However, the 10 ml pipettes were more precise than the mechanical pipettes.
Again, the P200 had the lowest accuracy and precision.
4. What does TD stand for and how does it relate to Volumetric, Mohr, Serological, and
Mechanical pipettes?
TD stands for To Deliver and these pipettes are designed to deliver a certain volume of
liquid without blowing out any remaining contents. Volumetric and Mohr pipettes are TD
pipettes. Serological and Mechanical Pipettes are TC, or To Contain, pipettes and are
designed to have their contents blown out after the initial dispending of liquid. For
example, mechanical pipettes have two stops. Pushing down to the first stop will dispense
an initial amount of liquid. Continuing to push down to the second stop will blow out
or dispense any remaining liquid.