graduated cylinder 3D model

graduated cylinder used in chemical lab

A graduated cylinder, measuring cylinder or mixing cylinder is a common piece of laboratory equipment used to measure the volume of a liquid. It has a narrow cylindrical shape. Each marked line on the graduated cylinder represents the amount of liquid that has been measured. Large graduated cylinders are usually made up of polypropylene for its excellent chemical resistance or polymethylpentene for its transparency, making them lighter and less fragile than glass. Polypropylene (PP) is easy to repeatedly autoclave; however, autoclaving in excess of about 121 °C (250 °F) (depending on the chemical formulation: typical commercial grade polypropylene melts in excess of 177 °C (351 °F)), can warp or damage polypropylene graduated cylinders, affecting accuracy.[1]

I H N traditional graduated cylinder (A in the image) is usually narrow and tall so as to increase the accuracy and precision of volume measurement; it has a plastic or glass bottom and a spout for easy pouring of the measured liquid. An additional version is wide and low.

Mixing cylinders (B in the picture) have ground glass joints instead of a spout, so they can be closed with a stopper or connect directly with other elements of a manifold.[2] With this kind of cylinder, the metered liquid does not pour directly, but is often removed using a cannula. A graduated cylinder is meant to be read with the surface of the liquid at eye level, where the center of the meniscus shows the measurement line. Typical capacities of graduated cylinders are from 10 mL to 1000 mL.