Comparison Between Glass and Plastic Sample Vials

Now, the sample vial has formed a considerable industrial scale and has been a concern for the instrument industry and academia. At the same time, its application has covered many key industries and fields such as food safety, environmental monitoring, quality inspection, commodity inspection, disease control, scientific research, and so on.

The goal when using a sample vial is to handle the processed samples. The scientists transfer the samples into suitable sample vials with closure or inject the sample directly into the sample vial for analysis. The scientists also transfer the sample solution into a suitable sample vessel and seal it to prevent from evaporation after sample processing. So the quality of the sample vials is important to keep in your mind.

As a widely known fact, not all glass is the same in the glass industry. And the quality of glass which is used for the construction of reagent lab wares must be in the first place when you select sample vials. Type I Borosilicate Glass is appreciated as higher quality and more resistant to thermal shock than common Type III soda lime glass. The glass not only does excellent performances at high temperatures, but its chemical resistance to acidic, neutral, and alkali solutions is also pretty good too.

The sample vials are essential for many lab. What kind of sample vial is suitable for you, the glass one or the plastic one? Here is the answer.

Glass sample vial
Laboratory glass sample vials are classified by the USP (United States Pharmacopeia) based on their water resistance.
1. USP Type 1, Class A, 33 Borosilicate Hydrochloride Glass
It is the most chemically inert glass and is widely used in laboratories, especially for chromatographic analysis. Class I glass is mainly composed of silicon and oxygen contains trace amounts of boron and sodium, has the lowest dissolution, and has a linear expansion coefficient of 33.
2. USP Type 1, Class B, 51 borosilicate hydrochloride glass
It is mainly composed of silicon and oxygen, and contains trace amounts of boron, sodium, and alkali metals more than A-grade glass, but still meets laboratory use.
3. Silanized or deactivated glass
It is a borosilicate hydrochloride glass that has been deactivated by organosilanization of glass.
4. USP TYPE 11, 111, and NP
The soda-lime glass’s chemical resistance is not as good as borosilicate glass.

Plastic sample vials
1.Polypropylene-PP
It is a hard material that can be processed into many colors and has good chemical resistance, suitable for short-term storage of most laboratory chemicals. When aromatic or halogenated hydrocarbons are used, their resistance decreases over time. Due to its low iron content, it can be washed with enoic acid and deionized water.
2.Polymethylpentene-TPY
It is a hard, transparent material with a high melting point and a useful range of 0-170℃. Due to the high transparency, TPX sample vials can replace opaque PP. Its chemical resistance is similar to PP. TPX sample vials are usually used in the case of samples or high temperatures. TPX sample vials are brittle at room temperature.

The cost of the plastic sample vials is slightly higher than that of glass. Some corrosive materials cannot be carried by plastic vials, but they are easy to transport and have high recycling value. The cost of glass sample vials is low and it is not easy to react with substances. But they are not easy to transport.

Hawach provides you the quality sample vials which are manufactured from Type I Borosilicate Glass. And Hawach sample vials are guaranteed to perform perfectly with most of the instruments in your lab.