Overview

• Post By : Kumar Jeetendra


• Source: Microbioz India


• Date: 21 Jun,2025

In lab science, even the tiniest vial impacts your organization’s workflows and test results. In most cases, vials are not regarded as noteworthy lab consumables that aid in sample preservation; however, they are important in maintaining integrity with regards to sample cross contamination and degrading test accuracy over time. This becomes more challenging due to the variety of plastic versus glass, porous versus non-porous caps ,amber and clear vials.

To assist you, we have summarized some key points here:

Consider Sample Properties

Certain substances necessitate certain vial materials:

1. Glass Vials : Ideal for organic solvents, acids, volatile samples.
2. Plastic Vials (like polypropylene or polyethylene): Aqueous samples which glass may either break or react with is best suited for these plastics. They are also more resistant to breakage.

Not following these guidelines poses risks of material mislabelling leading chemicals interactions that can severely damage data precision impacting scientific integrity paving a road for lawsui

Size is Crucial

Standard volumes for most biological samples lie between 1-20 ml. Having filler serum formulated as dormant while reiterating aerobic characterization into larger vials defeats the purpose of performing aerobic monitoring on an anaerobic setup because it goes beyond theoretical frameworks.

Using wider mouth vials can retain less moisture within them especially if used incorrectly to store smaller volumes making them unreliable zero vacuum environments.

Storage space: Increased size of vials may pose a problem for limited rack or freezer space.

Cap and Closure System

With any vial, the cap serves as the first layer of protection. Depending on your use case, you can choose:

1. Screw Caps: Accessible and simple to reseal which is great for repeated access uses.
2. Crimp Caps: Better sealing provided for long term storage or high pressure situations, although a crimping tool is necessary.
3. Snap Caps: Very easy to use, however not very good with volatile sample sounds.

Also pay attention to the liner materials of the cap as PTFE/silicone are more chemically resistant than PE liners which work well with water based solutions.

Light Sensitivity Of Samples

If your sample is light sensitive then amber colored vials would be advisable as they protect against UV degradation which is very important in pharmaceuticals and environmental labs.

A clear vial would be appropriate when a visual check is needed especially during quality control.

Cleanliness And Certification

For ultra-trace analysis such as in LC-MS or GC-MS, pre-cleaned and certified vials are necessary to avoid contamination. Certifications such as USP Type I or ISO standards assure you of quality compliance.

Special Aspects: More Than Just a Holder

Modern vials offer added functionalities such as:

1. Traceability barcode systems for vials
2. Silanized glass to minimize adsorption of analytes
3. Graduated markings to estimate the volume more easily
4. Increase in sealable septum autosampler exit ports for quantifiable washes

Final Thoughts: A Small Choice and Remarkably Big Impacts

The selection of a vial could be seen as innocuous, yet it has a profound impact on precision, accuracy, safety measures taken, and overall efficiency within your laboratory workflows. Analyze your samples type plus all their associated conditions which include method of testing, instrument compatibility, temperature ranges at which they must be stored, etc.

In any case, the right thing is that the container does not just carry your sample but ensures data integrity.