Ascorbic Acid Lab Report

ABSTRACT Due to the potential harmful effects of the glacial acetic acid, a commonly used diluting fluid for manual WBC count, the researchers proposed to use commercially-prepared ascorbic acid to lyse the red blood cells while maintaining the morphology of the white blood cells. This study aimed to compare the capability of commercially-prepared ascorbic acid as a lysing agent in a diluting fluid to glacial acetic acid. Specifically, this study aimed to compare their capabilities in lysing red blood cells, maintaining white blood cell morphology and white blood cell count.

For the preparation of the commercially-prepared ascorbic acid diluting fluid, the ground ascorbic acid tablets were diluted with distilled water. The ascorbic acid solution was then mixed with methylene blue as a staining agent, and the routine procedures for manual WBC count followed. To compare the capability of commercially-prepared ascorbic acid to that of glacial acetic acid, another manual WBC count was performed using the glacial acetic acid as the diluting fluid.

Critical

It has an infinite solubility with a density of 1.05. Its pH in a 1.0 M solution is at 2.4 with a vapor pressure of 11mmHg at 20 °C or 68 °F and a vapor density of 2.1 in air. It is stable under ordinary conditions of use and storage. Heat and sunlight may contribute to its instability. Heat, flame, ignition sources, freezing and incompatibles are conditions that must be avoided. Its vast use included the clinical laboratory setting in its scope since its weak acidity has the ability to lyse red blood cells in order to do manual white blood cell counts. Another clinical use is for lysing red blood cells which can obscure other important constituents in urine during a microscopic examination (Acetic Acid, Glacial. In Material Safety Data Sheet. Retrieved March 7, 2015, from