CALIBRATION OF A PIPETTE [Procedure is the same for burette]

Introduction
An ordinary laboratory pipette may be expected to deliver its nominal volume with good precision and
good accuracy if it is used in the way recommended. In this experiment we investigate the precision and
accuracy of such a pipette by making accurate determinations of the mass of water it delivers in repeated
operations.

Materials
25 cm3 pipette, 50-cm3 beaker, thermometer, pipette filler, graph paper.

Procedure (Read carefully)

1. Clean the beaker and the pipette and dry the beaker.
2. Obtain distilled water in a conical flask and let it stand on the bench for about 15 min before
determining its temperature.
3. Weigh the beaker on a balance which allows you to determine the mass to the nearest tenth of a
milligram (i.e. ± 0.001 g).
4. Fill (use the pipette filler) and discharge the pipette as recommended, into the beaker, and determine
the mass of water discharged by taking the difference between mass of beaker and mass of beaker
and water.
5. Repeat step 4 until you have the results of four (4) such trials.

Calculations
1. Find the mean of the four trials. The mean volume Vo can now be determined from the mean mass and
the density of water at the temperature you determined in step 2 above.

2. Find the mean volume of water discharged by the pipette using the formula:

Mean Volume: Vo = mean mass / density of water

3. Comment on the accuracy of the pipette.

4. We now want to determine the precision of the pipette.

Table of Mass and Volume of Water obtained in 4 Pipette Trials

Trial No. Mass of water/g Vol. of water, Vi/cm3 (Vi – Vo) = di (Vi - V)2 = di2

The standard deviation, σ, is given by the formula:

s = √ {∑(Vi – Vo)2 / (N-1)}

Write your result for the mean volume you determined in step 2 with the error(standard deviation you have
now estimated from the data;
Volume of pipette = Vo (± s)

Comment now, on the accuracy and precision of the pipette.