I’ve been doing some laser granulometry recently. This affords me time in-between sample changeovers to do other things nearby, and I’ve taken the opportunity to design and manufacture some useful little tools for the lab.
The first item was a tray for the small 4ml glass vials we use for storing pollen concentrates (Fisher #14811582) and completed micro-charcoal and SCP concentrates. Although cardboard boxes are available for these (Fisher #10384573), and wire racks that, although a little big, are low enough profile to work (e.g. Starlabs #E2396-1612), we didn’t have anything suitable for regular handling of samples in the laboratory. The withdrawal of the “Denleystor” range (e.g. Fisher #12448081) is a real shame, as these were perfect for the task. Never mind – I designed a 24-place tray especially for these 4ml vials – see the pictures below (24 is a full batch of pollen, SCP or micro-charcoal samples for us). They make the samples easier to handle and the sample delivery more professional.
The second and third item was inspired by an undergraduate student who was having trouble weighing 15ml centrifuge tubes. Although they knew they could stand them inside glassware, all of the beakers they chose caused an overweight condition on the microbalance. I very quickly made a simple centrifuge tube holder – see the photo. I’ve made versions for both 15 and 50ml tubes (e.g. Fisher #10738771 and #11512303) and put them by the lab balances.
These were designed using 123D Design and printed on our Velleman K8200. The files are available here. I’ve made them available under a Creative Commons licence (below). Do you want to buy these things? I keep a stock for sale – click here for more information.
3D Printed Lab Gadgets by Tom Bishop is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at https://thomasbishop.uk/3d-printed-vial-trays-and-centrifuge-tube-stands.