Pipette Quick Checks
Standard Operating Procedure

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Pipette Quick Checks

Standard Operating Procedure

Step-by-step guidance for gravimetrical pipette routine tests

Pipette Quick Checks
Pipette Quick Checks

Scope

The scope of this Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is to describe how to verify and check pipettes to ensure that dispensing is carried out with the intended accuracy and precision. It describes the procedure for performing regular pipette quick checks on a laboratory balance and is designed to instruct laboratory personnel on how to proceed for thorough pipette testing of a balance.

 

Easy and straightforward process on your laboratory balance

Do you tend to skip pipette tests because you think they're difficult to perform? If so, then this SOP is for you. It explains in ten easy-to-follow steps how anybody in the lab can check the performance of their pipettes.

All you need is your lab balance, a vessel or an evaporation trap, some deionized water and the following SOP.

ISO 8655 pipetting standard for laboratories

The test norm most commonly used for pipettes and dispensers and their calibration is the standard DIN EN ISO 8655.

This International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard specifies the requirements for piston-operated volumetric apparatus. ISO 8655 is subdivided into seven specific sections:

  • Part 1: ISO 8655-1:2002: Terminology, general requirements and user recommendations
  • Part 2: ISO 8655-2:2002: Piston pipettes
  • Part 3: ISO 8655-3:2002: Piston burettes
  • Part 4: ISO 8655-4:2002: Dilutors
  • Part 5: ISO 8655-5:2002: Dispensers
  • Part 6: ISO 8655-6:2002: Gravimetric methods for the determination of measurement error
  • Part 7: ISO 8655-7:2005: Non-gravimetric methods for the assessment of equipment performance

The pipette check procedure described in this SOP is based on the specifications of ISO 8655-6 regarding gravimetric testing. It provides instructions regarding the calculation of the mean volume, accuracy (mean error) and precision (standard deviation). The absolute and relative maximum permissible errors depending on the volume according to ISO 8655-2 are also listed.