BIOCHEMISTRY

LABORATORY
INSTRUMENTS/MATERIALS/ EQUIPMENT NEEDED IN BIOCHEMISTRY
LABORATORY

INSTRUMENTS/MATERIALS/ USE/FUNCTION EXAMPLE OF

EQUIPMENT CHEMICAL
MIXTURE
Test Tube Test tubes are The purpose of
often used to test tubes are to
conduct live handle chemicals,
experiments as especially for
well, including the qualitative
growth and testing experiments and
of microbes assays.
(microscopic
organisms) such
as bacteria and
small fungi. Also,
test tubes may be
used to collect
biological samples,
including blood,
saliva, and urine.
Beaker Beakers are useful Beakers are
as a reaction useful as a
container or to hold reaction container
liquid or solid or to hold liquid or
samples. solid samples.
They are also
used to catch
liquids from
titrations and
filtrates from
filtering
operations.
Graduated Cylinder Graduated Graduated
cylinders are long, cylinders are long,
slender vessels slender vessels
used for measuring used
the volumes of for measuring the
liquids. volumes of liquids.
They are not
 intended for
mixing, stirring,
heating, or
weighing.

Round Bottom Flasks Round-bottom It is most often

flasks are often used when heating
used to contain solutions,
chemical reactions particularly for
run by chemists, distillation.
especially for reflux
set-ups and
laboratory-scale
synthesis.
Erlenmeyer Flask Erlenmeyer flasks The flask is often
are used to contain used for stirring or
liquids and for heating
mixing, heating, solutions and is
cooling, incubation, purposefully
filtration, storage, designed to be
and other liquid- useful for those
handling tasks.
processes.
Watch Glasses Watch glasses are A watch glass is a
circular, slightly- round, concave
concave pieces of glass dish used
glass that are used for evaporation in
by chemists to chemistry. It can
evaporate liquids also be employed
and cover beakers for weighing solids
during sample and as a lid for
preparation. They flasks and
are also used to beakers.
hold solids during
weighing.

Dropper Pipettes Dropper pipettes The purpose is to

are generally used transfer small
for moving small quantities of
amounts of liquid liquids. They are
or when measuring used in the
and dispensing laboratory and
liquid in mL units. also to dispense
small amounts of
liquid medicines. A
very common use
was to dispense
eye drops into the
 eye.
Burette A burette is A burette is
used to dispense used to dispense
small volumes of small volumes of
liquid called liquid called
aliquots, or aliquots, or
sometimes gas, sometimes gas,
with high accuracy. with high
accuracy. It
consists of a long
glass tube with a
valve at one end to
control the flow of
liquid. Burettes
serve essentially
the same purpose
as a pipette.
Distilling Flask It is primarily used It is primarily used
for distillation, the for distillation, the
process of process of
separating a separating a
mixture of liquids mixture of liquids
with different with different
boiling points boiling points
through through
evaporation and evaporation and
condensation. condensation.

Graham Condenser for A Graham A Graham

Distillation condenser is condenser is
used to cool and used to cool and
condense a gas condense a gas
back to a liquid, back to a liquid,
often as part of the often as part of the
process of process of
chemical chemical
distillation. distillation. The
piece consists of a
coiled glass tube
through which the
gas travels. The
coil is surrounded
by a jacket of
water that helps to
cool the gas.
Volumetric Flasks Volumetric flasks A volumetric flask
are used for is lab glass or
accurate dilutions plasticware used
and preparation of to prepare a
solutions and any solution. It is
other liquids used to make up a
needed at the solution to a
 laboratory known volume.
workflow. Volumetric flasks
are used to
measure volumes
much more
precisely than
beakers or
Erlenmeyer flasks.

Petri Dish Petri dish is a A Petri dish is a

shallow cylindrical, shallow
round glass that is transparent glass
used in or plastic
laboratories to cylindrical lidded
culture different dish, used to
microorganisms contain a thin layer
and cells. of agar on which to
grow bacteria and
fungi. Millions of
Petri dishes are
used in
microbiology labs
every year.
Evaporating Dish Evaporating Evaporating
Dishes are Dishes are
glassware glassware
containers used for containers used
laboratory testing. for laboratory
They are used for testing. They are
the evaporation of used for the
liquids and evaporation of
solutions to liquids and
produce a solid solutions to
substance or produce a solid
concentrated substance or
solutions. concentrated
solutions. Dishes
have a shallow flat
round surface to
promote
evaporation.
Spot Plate Use spot plates Use spot plates
(also called (also called
reaction plates or reaction plates or
culture plates) to culture plates) to
perform reactions perform reactions
on a small amount on a small amount
of chemicals. of chemicals. Each
features many
depressions (or
wells), either 12 or
24, in which to
 perform the
reaction.
Crucible and Cover Enable chemical Crucible is used in
compounds to be the laboratory to
heated to very high contain chemical
temperatures. compounds when
heated to
extremely high
temperatures.
Crucibles are
available in
several sizes and
typically come with
a correspondingly-
sized lid.
A graduated Graduated
pipette is a pipette Pipettes are types
Graduated Pipette with its volume, in of macro pipettes.
increments, They
marked along the can accurately
tube. It is used to measure volumes
accurately of liquids larger
measure and than micropipettes
transfer a volume can handle. Just
of liquid from one like any other
container to pipettes,
another. graduated pipettes
are made either
with plastic or
borosilicate glass.
It has a tapered tip
and a cylinder tube
bearing the
volume markings
for measurement.
Pipestem Triangle The Pipestem Wire gauzes are
triangle is used to used to support
support a crucible larger objects,
while it is being such as beakers
heated over a and evaporating
Bunsen burner. It dishes while they
is very heat are being heated.
resistant and can
be used at high
temperatures.
Bunsen Burner Used for heating, A heat source in
sterilization, and laboratory
combustion. experiments
 Laboratory Tripod A laboratory tripod To support flasks
is a three-legged and beakers.
platform used to
support flasks and
beakers.

Electronic Balance Electronic balance Instrument for the

is an instrument laboratories for
used in precise
the accurate measurement of
measurement of chemicals which
weight of are used in various
materials. experiments

Retort Support Stand Used to support To support other

other pieces of pieces of
equipment and equipment and
glassware for glassware
instance, burettes,
test tubes and
flasks.

2 and 3 Fingered Clamps The small size is Used to hold larger

typically used to pieces of
hold small thin glassware and
cylindrical items odd-shaped
such as objects
thermometers and
temperature
probes.
Clamps Holder A clamp holder in a To secure
lab is used to laboratory clamps
secure an
extension-type
utility clamp to a
 support stand or
ring stand.

Tube Holder A test tube holder To hold test tubes.

is used to hold test It is used for
tubes. It is used for holding a test tube
holding a test tube in place when the
in place when the tube is hot or
tube is hot or should not be
should not be touched
touched.

Test Tube Rack A test tube rack is used to hold

a piece of multiple test tubes
laboratory upright at the
equipment used to same time
hold multiple test
tubes upright at the
same time.

Aspirator A device for Used for removing

removing liquids or obstructions
gases by suction.

Laboratory Thermometer A laboratory Thermometer

thermometer Used for
is used to measure measuring
the boiling point temperatures other
and freezing point than the human
during science body temperature
experiments.

Glass Stirring Rod A glass stirring rod Used to help

is used to stir or decant the liquid
mix solutions. from a container
while retaining a
solid in the original
flask

Laboratory Rubber Stoppers Rubber stopper To prevent a gas

is to prevent a gas or liquid from
 or liquid from escaping its
escaping its container during a
container during a scientific
scientific experiment
experiment.
Pipe Cleaning Brush A test tube brush To clean out pipes
or spout brush is a and other long
brush used hollow pipelines
for cleaning test
tubes and narrow
mouth laboratory
glassware, such as
graduated
cylinders, burettes,
and Erlenmeyer
flasks.