The cuvettes we sell for our Colorimeter and the SpectroVis Plus are made of polystyrene, which can be damaged by many different types of liquid substances. Examples of common liquids that should NOT be poured into these cuvettes: ketones (acetone, 2-butanone), alkanes (hexanes, heptane), and highly concentrated acids or bases.
The cuvettes we sell for use with UV-VIS spectrometers are made of a proprietary plastic, but many of the same liquids can damage these cuvettes. A compatibility chart is available:
Compatibility of Plastic Cuvettes to Various Liquid Substances
| Chemical | CUV (polystyrene) | UV-VIS (proprietary plastic) |
|---|---|---|
| Acetic acid (96%) | Poor | Poor |
| Acetone | Poor | Poor |
| Acetonitrile | Poor | Poor |
| Benzene | Poor | Poor |
| Methylethyl Ketone | Poor | Poor |
| Carbon tetrachloride | Poor | Poor |
| Chloroform | Poor | Poor |
| Diethyl ether | Poor | Poor |
| Dimethyl sulfoxide | Marginal | Poor |
| Ethanol | Poor | Poor |
| Formaldehyde (40%) | Poor | Poor |
| Heptane | Poor | Marginal |
| Hexanes | Poor | Excellent |
| Hydrochloric acid (32%) | Marginal | Poor |
| Isopropanol | Marginal | Marginal |
| n-Pentane | Poor | Poor |
| Oleic acid | Poor | Poor |
| Perchloric acid (10%) | Poor | Poor |
| Petroleum ether | Poor | Poor |
| Phenol | Poor | Poor |
| Sodium hydroxide | Excellent | Poor |
| Sulfuric acid | Poor | Poor |
| Trichloroacetic acid | Poor | Poor |
| Trichloroethylene | Poor | Poor |
| Toluene | Poor | Poor |
- Excellent: the properties of the cuvette are not changed after 24 hours of exposure to the chemical
- Marginal: the properties of the cuvette may not change after 24 hours of exposure to the chemical; testing is recommended before use in an experiment
- Poor: the cuvette will be damaged within 24 hours of exposure to the chemical
Reference: BrandTech Scientific, Inc., Perkin Elmer Life and Analytical Sciences, Cole Parmer
Alternately, please visit the website of a cuvette manufacturer such as BrandTech or Starna, which posts this information online.
You will need a 10 mm path length cuvette with a nominal volume of 3.5 mL. The width and length should be 10 mm. This is a standard 1 cm^2 cuvette. Many companies sell them. The Starna catalog number for these glass cuvettes is 1-G-10.