Graduated cylinder

Graduated cylinder. Ring at top is used to prevent breakage if knocked over.

A graduated cylinder is a piece of laboratory equipment used to accurately measure the volume of an object. Graduated cylinders are generally more accurate and precise for this purpose than flasks and beakers. Often, the largest graduated cylinders are made of polypropylene for its excellent chemical resistance or polymethylpentene for its clarity, making them lighter to ship and less fragile than glass. Polypropylene cylinders have excellent chemical resistance and do not shatter when dropped, although one problem with this type of cylinder is that it can not be heated. Polypropylene is easy to repeatedly autoclave (sterilize); however, autoclaving of some polypropylene graduated cylinders may affect their accuracy.

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