Understanding Types of Water in the Lab

Before you begin your experiment, it is crucial for you to know all the different water types that are available in the lab. If you are unaware of all the water types, you may incorporate the wrong solution in the experiment, thus resulting in inaccurate findings.

To make it easier for you to understand, let’s divide the types of water into two main categories, industrial water, and deionized water.

Industrial water

Industrial water is neither recommended nor safe for consumption, as it is not filtered or cleaned. It is non-potable water. This type of water can be used for general purposes, such as toilet bowls and washing machines at home.

In the lab, industrial water is typically used to clean the dishes. It is not recommended to use this water in your lab experiment, as the impurities present in the liquid could affect the results.

Deionized water

You must have heard about deionized water quite a couple of times. As the name suggests, this type of water is free from ions. The ions are removed from the water with the help of the filtration process.
This type of water is a little more useful in laboratory settings than just washing the hands and dishes. With that said, deionized water can be used to give the lab equipment a final wash, in order to completely get rid of all impurities. Moreover, this type of water can also be utilized in the creation of buffers.

Other types of water

The above discussed were the two main types of water found in a lab; however, some other types of water are available.

RO water

RO water is one of the most widely used waters in a lab. It is basically processed water from which ions are removed, along with molecular biology products through osmosis. This type of water could be used for making buffers, mass spectrometry applications, molecular biology products, cell or bacterial cultural applications, and much more.

Distilled water

In this type of water, the impurities are removed by using the distillation process. It can not be termed as pure water as there could be certain impurities present, which might have been missed during the water distillation process. There are better and more reliable sources available if you are searching for pure water.

It is always important to understand the things before you begin to use them. Using incorrect types of water could lead to disastrous experiment results, especially if they contain molecular biology products. Therefore, always ensure that you understand the water type and its properties before incorporating it in your experiment.

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