{"id":162,"date":"2026-07-15T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T18:42:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hydrauae.com\/blog\/what-is-a-burette-and-how-to-use-it-for-titration\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T18:48:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T18:48:25","slug":"what-is-a-burette-and-how-to-use-it-for-titration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hydrauae.com\/blog\/what-is-a-burette-and-how-to-use-it-for-titration\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Burette and How to Use It for Titration"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you have ever needed to find the exact concentration of an acid or a base, you have needed a burette. It is the instrument that turns “about right” into a precise number. Control the flow drop by drop with a burette and you capture the exact endpoint with confidence.<\/p>\n

This guide explains what a burette is<\/strong>, the parts and types you will come across, and exactly how to use a burette for titration<\/strong> — step by step. It is written for students, lab technicians and QC teams across the UAE who want accurate, repeatable results.<\/p>\n

A burette is a long, graduated glass tube with a stopcock (tap) at the bottom that releases liquid in controlled amounts. Because it lets you dispense and measure at the same time, it sits at the heart of analytical chemistry — from school practicals to pharmaceutical and water-testing laboratories.<\/p>\n

What is a burette used for?<\/h2>\n

A burette’s main job is titration — a method for finding the unknown concentration of a solution. You slowly add a solution of known concentration (the titrant) from the burette into a measured volume of the unknown solution (the analyte) until a chemical reaction is complete. The volume you dispensed tells you how much titrant reacted, and from that you calculate the concentration.<\/p>\n

Common uses include acid–base titrations, redox titrations, water-hardness and chlorine testing, and quality-control checks in food, beverage and pharmaceutical labs.<\/p>\n

Parts of a burette<\/h2>\n
    \n
  • Graduated tube<\/strong> — the main barrel, marked in millilitres (a standard burette reads to 50 ml with 0.1 ml graduations).<\/li>\n
  • Stopcock (tap)<\/strong> — the flow control at the base. Modern burettes use a PTFE (Teflon) stopcock that needs no grease and resists chemicals; classic glass-key stopcocks use a light film of grease.<\/li>\n
  • Tip (jet)<\/strong> — the narrow nozzle where the drop forms.<\/li>\n
  • Meniscus<\/strong> — the curved surface of the liquid you read against the scale.<\/li>\n
  • Schellbach stripe (on some burettes)<\/strong> — a blue line on a white band that sharpens the meniscus reading.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Types of burettes<\/h2>\n

    Choose the type based on the accuracy you need and how often you titrate.<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Glass burettes<\/strong> — the most common. Excellent visibility and chemical resistance, ideal for most titration work, available in Class A (certified) and Class B (routine use).<\/li>\n
    • Plastic burettes<\/strong> — lighter and durable (often polypropylene); best matched to compatible chemicals.<\/li>\n
    • Digital \/ bottle-top burettes<\/strong> — mount on a reagent bottle and dispense by a dial; fast and repeatable for routine dosing.<\/li>\n
    • Automatic \/ motorised burettes<\/strong> — used with autotitrators for high-throughput or regulated labs, with results on a digital display.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      For analytical accuracy, a Class A glass burette<\/strong> remains the benchmark.<\/p>\n

      How to use a burette for titration: step by step<\/h2>\n
        \n
      1. Clean and condition.<\/strong> Wash the burette, rinse with distilled water, then rinse with a little of the titrant. This keeps your titrant at full strength for an accurate result.<\/li>\n
      2. Mount it vertically.<\/strong> Clamp the burette to a stand and keep it vertical for clear, parallax-free readings.<\/li>\n
      3. Fill above zero.<\/strong> Pour in the titrant until the level is just above the 0.00 ml mark. If you used a funnel, remove it now so your reading stays accurate.<\/li>\n
      4. Clear the tip.<\/strong> Open the stopcock briefly to let titrant fill the tip and release any trapped air.<\/li>\n
      5. Take the initial reading.<\/strong> Lower your eye to the level of the liquid and read the bottom of the meniscus. Record to the first decimal and estimate the second (e.g. 0.05 ml).<\/li>\n
      6. Prepare the analyte.<\/strong> Pipette a measured volume of the unknown into a clean conical flask and add a few drops of a suitable indicator (for example, phenolphthalein for acid–base work).<\/li>\n
      7. Titrate slowly.<\/strong> Open the stopcock to add titrant drop by drop while swirling the flask. As you near the endpoint, slow to one drop at a time.<\/li>\n
      8. Stop at the endpoint.<\/strong> The endpoint is where the indicator changes colour permanently (a faint, lasting pink with phenolphthalein). Close the stopcock.<\/li>\n
      9. Take the final reading<\/strong> the same way, at the bottom of the meniscus.<\/li>\n
      10. Calculate.<\/strong> The titre is the difference between final and initial readings. Repeat until results agree (within about 0.10 ml), then use the average.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Endpoint vs equivalence point<\/h2>\n

        These two terms are closely related. The equivalence point<\/strong> is the exact moment the moles of titrant equal the moles of analyte — the true chemistry. The endpoint<\/strong> is what you observe, usually an indicator colour change. A well-chosen indicator brings the endpoint as close as possible to the equivalence point, which is why indicator choice matters.<\/p>\n

        Best practices for accurate titration<\/h2>\n