Eliminating Sources of Pipetting Error in the Forensic Laboratory
David M. Epstein, Ian R. Tebbett, Shannon E. Boyd · Forensic Science Communications · 2003
Air-displacement pipettes are used to perform so many analytical methods that they are often taken for granted. Pipettes are complex precision instruments subject to error due to mechanical failure and improper operator technique. Pipettes may contribute more inaccuracy and imprecision to laboratory results than any other single source (Conners and Curtis 1999). In the forensic laboratory, where data integrity must be above reproach, it is vital for criminalists and managers to understand and address the likely sources of error related to pipette function and technique.