The triple beam balance is an instrument used to measure mass very precisely. The device has reading error of +/- 0.05 gram. The name refers to the three beams including the middlebeam which is the largest size, the far beam which is the medium size, and the front beam which is the smallest size. The difference in size of the beams indicatethe difference in weights and reading scale that each beam carry. The reading scale can be enumerated that the middle beam reads in 100 gram increments, the far beam can read in 10 gram increments, and the front beam can read from 0 to 10 grams. The triple beam balance can be used to measure mass directly from the objects, find mass by difference for liquid, and measure out a substance.
Parts of a triple beam balance
The parts of triple beam balance are identified as the following.
Weighing pan - The area in which an object is placed in order to be weighed.
Base - The base rests underneath the weighing pan and can usually be customised to fit on a workbench or set up with tripod legs.
Beams - The three beams on the balance are used to set the level of precision, with each beam working at different increments. When using the triple beam balance, it is recommended that your start with the lowest level of precision e.g 100 gram increments and then work your way down. For example, if your object weighs 327 grams the 100 gram pointer will drop below the fixed mark on the 4th notch, you will then need to move this back to the third notch. This process will then need to be repeated for the 10 gram increments and then single figure units.
Riders - The riders are the sliding pointers placed on top of the balance beams to indicate the mass in grams on the pan and beam.
Pointers - The scale pointer marks the equal point of the object's mass on the scale and mass on the beam
Zero adjustment knob - This is used to manually adjust the triple beam balance to the 'zero' mark.
Before using triple beam balance, the scale pointer should be at zero. The zero adjustment knob can be used to adjust the scale pointer. Place the objects on the pan and adjust the riders. The hundred rider should be initially adjusted and follow by the tens rider. Adjust the ones rider until the scale pointer is at zero again.
