Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
1 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
A Guide to Laboratory Report Writing
1 Before writing the laboratory
Before you write your lab experiment you should read any lab manuals or handouts
that contain background for the lab and directions to the procedures
Try to answer the following questions
1 What scientific concept is this experiment about
Identify the scientific concepts (principles theory and law) and write what you
know about them
2 What are the objectives of this experiment
Describe the actions you were asked to perform in the experiment for
example to measure analyse or test something
3 What is the overall purpose of the experiment
Describe the objectives of the experiment and show the link between the
objectives and the scientific concept of the experiment
4 What is your hypothesis for the experiment
Identify the variable in the experiment and state the hypothesis the
relationship or interaction among the variables and the expected outcome of
the experiment
5 What reasoning did you use to arrive at your hypothesis
Explain your hypothesis using the scientific concept of this experiment to
show the reasoning behind your prediction
2 During the laboratory experiment
During the experiment there are a few steps that you need to follow
1 Set up the experiment review the objectives and the procedure you will follow
list materials you will use including instrument calibration Note down any
possible uncertainty You may be required to draw and label the instruments you
will use
2 Prepare to collect the data list all the independent and the dependent variables
in the experiment Give the unit of measurement beside each variable where
appropriate State your hypothesis and your prediction of the relationship or
interaction among variables Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
2 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
3 Record you data using either a table or a spreadsheet use the list of variables
and units of measurements to create a spreadsheet or a table for your data
4 Conducting the experiment follow the experimental protocol carefully make sure
you note down any changes from the protocol Describe any other observations
while collecting the data during the experiment and make notes of any trends that
emerge in the data
5 Present your data in an appropriate visual format
Establish the type of the data for example quantitative or qualitative then decide
whether the data should be presented in a table graph or spreadsheet
Remember that the purpose of visualising the data is to summarise the findings
and to reveal trends in the data for yourself and others
6 Making sense of the data review all the data the drawings the tables or graphs
and try to make sense of the findings of the experiment In a sentence or two
summarise the overall findings
3 After the laboratory experiment
Writing the laboratory report
A laboratory report can be described as a written record of an investigation or process
In science technology and engineering laboratory reports are used to develop and
communicate ideas effectively and to prove their validity Students are required to learn
how to describe the science they do in order to develop their report writing skills which
assist them to write more extended research reports in their higher education
A standard format is (approximately) used in most scientific laboratory reports it may
include the following sections
1 Abstract (or Summary)
2 Introduction aims
3 Theoretical background
4 Experimental design methods and procedure
5 Analysis of results and discussion
6 Conclusion
7 References
8 Personal statement (applied in some departments) Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
3 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
Abstract (or often referred to as the Summary in CBE)
What to include in the Abstract
The Abstract is a concise summary of the entire report Each section is presented in a
sentence or a phrase that follows the same structure of the report It should summarise
the introduction and the conclusion Since it is a summary it is recommended to be
written last Quantitative results should be included in the abstract for engineering
reports
The abstract can be one paragraph which includes the following from each section
Introduction main objectives of the lab hypothesis
Methods a brief description of the procedure
Results statement of the overall findings
Discussion judgement about hypothesis explanation for judgement
Conclusion what you learned about the scientific concept
What to include in the introduction
I Introduction aims
A Motivation
B Summary of the experiment
State in a sentence or two the scientific concept of the experiment and then describe
what you know about the concept (taken from lecture notes and other reference
sources) that is relevant to the experiment After that write the objectives of the
experiment and what they will help you learn about the scientific concept Finally state
the hypothesis (or put more simply the aims of the experiment) For research project
related reports you would be required to explain how you reached the hypothesis using
your knowledge about the scientific concept as a basis for reasoning Generally for the
lab reports in CBE stating the aims is sufficient
II Theoretical background
In reports that deal with instrumentation this is usually an explanation of the
mathematics involved and consequently will include several equations Give any
equations or principles you will use in the analysis You may quote briefly (up to 30
words) from textbooks but should not include ant derivations Refer to your sources by
name and year eg (Seider Seader & Lewin 2003) and give full details in your Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
4 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
reference section (Normally no more than half a page but varies according to the type
of experiment)
III Experimental design methods and procedure
A Description of the apparatus
B Description of the experimental procedure
Provide a drawing of the main apparatus by preferably draw using computer package
otherwise neatly drawn by hand (CBE do not accept photographs and diagrams
from the internet) and present a brief technical description Refer the reader to the
figure that contains the drawing in the same way when referring to tables or graphs Try
to answer the following question in paragraph form what is the apparatus made of
What are its important dimensions What precisely are the instruments How does it
work
Provide a concise chronological description of the laboratory procedure in paragraph
form explaining the intention of the experiment and what you actually did why were
samples taken How were they taken
Use proper past tense and passive voice For example „‟the temperature was
measured‟‟ or „‟ the samples were tested‟‟ To add clarity to your description use proper
transitional „‟sign post‟‟ words to indicate sequence for example step 1 step 2 first
second after that next finally
Avoid putting any results of the experiment in the methods but include the methods you
used in gathering and analysing the data
IV Analysis of results and discussion
A Method of analysis
B Presentation of results
C Discussion of results
D Suggestion for future improvement (optional)
Describe the overall findings of the experiment in one or two sentences Make sure you
present your data appropriately in tables graphs or any other figures then write a
paragraph about each visual including a summary of the trend (in one or two sentences)
and support the summary by adding specific details from the visuals that are important
for understanding the results Refer appropriately to the visuals in the paragraph (table Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
5 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
1 figure 2 etc) Report the data from the experiment only avoid any explanations and
conclusions about the data at this point
Start your discussion by a statement to explain what the results mean and whether
they support do not support your hypothesis (in the introduction) Refer to specific data
from the findings as evidence as to whether or not the hypothesis is supported Use
what you have learned about the scientific concept of the experiment to explain
convincingly whether or not the data support the hypothesis Include any relevant
observations any problems that occurred or any sources of uncertainty in the
experiment procedure Give explanations for the difference in findings when you
compare the data with the findings of other students Make suggestions for improving
the experiment
V Conclusion
A Summary of the results
B Relevance of the results to the questions raised in the introduction
State directly what you have learned about the scientific concept of the experiment from
doing the lab This should be limited to what evidence the experiment provides It
should be a summary of the results and it should always reflect the questions posed in
the aims
Scientific writing style a few important points
1 Structure may vary for different courseworks such as lab reports research
project reports (You need to check this with the module leader)
2 Your writing should be in complete grammatically correct sentences
3 Be concise If you can use 1 word instead of a phrase with two or more words
then choose the 1 word (eg get around avoid)
4 Be objective Limit your use of personal pronouns (I you we) emotionally loaded
words (wonderful useless lovely)
5 Do not use contractions (isn‟t doesn‟t it‟s) these are common in speech in
formal writing the full form (is not does not it is) is used
6 Use Harvard style for citations and references (see
httpwwwlibrarydevelopmentgroupshefacukdepartmentengineeringhtml ) Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
6 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
7 When writing the report you write about what you did Therefore actions should
be in the past tense (Say what you did not what you should have done)
8 If there is an apparatus a good description of the apparatus is important make
sure you have
A A neat labelled drawing(s) showing how the apparatus works and any
important detail
B A description of how it works
C Technical specifications and how it can be combined
Style
Scientific reports are usually written in impersonal language the resistance was
measured not we measured the resistance figure 2 shows that or it can be seen
from figure 2 that not you can see from figure 2 that This is probably not a style you
are used to using (and the grammar checker in Word will complain like mad) but it is
the standard approach and we will penalise you if you do not use it The reason for it is
probably that it focuses attention on the results themselves and not on the person who
did the work the implication is that these are results that anybody can reproduce by
repeating the experiment as described This is a cornerstone of scientific enquiry and is
one reason why experimental papers contain details of the experimental method
(here‟s how we did it—go ahead and try it yourself if you don‟t trust us)
Tense in scientific reports is a bit confused normally you use the past tense when
describing what you did (the resistance was measured) so the methods and
analysis sections should be in the past tense On the other hand the background
information and the theory are presumably still true so they are normally in the
present tense (the measurement of stellar masses is a key factor in understanding
stellar structure and evolution) thus the theory and probably the first half of the
introduction (explaining why the experiment is interesting and important) should
be in the present tense Likewise comparisons of results and descriptions of
features of the data should be in the present tense (the results are shown in figure
2 the points in figure 2 lie on a straight line the measured value is in good
agreement with the prediction) Basically do what seems right if you are describing
something that happened in the past use the past if you‟re talking about something
that still exists use the present
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该内容是文档的文本内容，更好的格式请下载文档
1 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
A Guide to Laboratory Report Writing
1 Before writing the laboratory
Before you write your lab experiment you should read any lab manuals or handouts
that contain background for the lab and directions to the procedures
Try to answer the following questions
1 What scientific concept is this experiment about
Identify the scientific concepts (principles theory and law) and write what you
know about them
2 What are the objectives of this experiment
Describe the actions you were asked to perform in the experiment for
example to measure analyse or test something
3 What is the overall purpose of the experiment
Describe the objectives of the experiment and show the link between the
objectives and the scientific concept of the experiment
4 What is your hypothesis for the experiment
Identify the variable in the experiment and state the hypothesis the
relationship or interaction among the variables and the expected outcome of
the experiment
5 What reasoning did you use to arrive at your hypothesis
Explain your hypothesis using the scientific concept of this experiment to
show the reasoning behind your prediction
2 During the laboratory experiment
During the experiment there are a few steps that you need to follow
1 Set up the experiment review the objectives and the procedure you will follow
list materials you will use including instrument calibration Note down any
possible uncertainty You may be required to draw and label the instruments you
will use
2 Prepare to collect the data list all the independent and the dependent variables
in the experiment Give the unit of measurement beside each variable where
appropriate State your hypothesis and your prediction of the relationship or
interaction among variables Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
2 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
3 Record you data using either a table or a spreadsheet use the list of variables
and units of measurements to create a spreadsheet or a table for your data
4 Conducting the experiment follow the experimental protocol carefully make sure
you note down any changes from the protocol Describe any other observations
while collecting the data during the experiment and make notes of any trends that
emerge in the data
5 Present your data in an appropriate visual format
Establish the type of the data for example quantitative or qualitative then decide
whether the data should be presented in a table graph or spreadsheet
Remember that the purpose of visualising the data is to summarise the findings
and to reveal trends in the data for yourself and others
6 Making sense of the data review all the data the drawings the tables or graphs
and try to make sense of the findings of the experiment In a sentence or two
summarise the overall findings
3 After the laboratory experiment
Writing the laboratory report
A laboratory report can be described as a written record of an investigation or process
In science technology and engineering laboratory reports are used to develop and
communicate ideas effectively and to prove their validity Students are required to learn
how to describe the science they do in order to develop their report writing skills which
assist them to write more extended research reports in their higher education
A standard format is (approximately) used in most scientific laboratory reports it may
include the following sections
1 Abstract (or Summary)
2 Introduction aims
3 Theoretical background
4 Experimental design methods and procedure
5 Analysis of results and discussion
6 Conclusion
7 References
8 Personal statement (applied in some departments) Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
3 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
Abstract (or often referred to as the Summary in CBE)
What to include in the Abstract
The Abstract is a concise summary of the entire report Each section is presented in a
sentence or a phrase that follows the same structure of the report It should summarise
the introduction and the conclusion Since it is a summary it is recommended to be
written last Quantitative results should be included in the abstract for engineering
reports
The abstract can be one paragraph which includes the following from each section
Introduction main objectives of the lab hypothesis
Methods a brief description of the procedure
Results statement of the overall findings
Discussion judgement about hypothesis explanation for judgement
Conclusion what you learned about the scientific concept
What to include in the introduction
I Introduction aims
A Motivation
B Summary of the experiment
State in a sentence or two the scientific concept of the experiment and then describe
what you know about the concept (taken from lecture notes and other reference
sources) that is relevant to the experiment After that write the objectives of the
experiment and what they will help you learn about the scientific concept Finally state
the hypothesis (or put more simply the aims of the experiment) For research project
related reports you would be required to explain how you reached the hypothesis using
your knowledge about the scientific concept as a basis for reasoning Generally for the
lab reports in CBE stating the aims is sufficient
II Theoretical background
In reports that deal with instrumentation this is usually an explanation of the
mathematics involved and consequently will include several equations Give any
equations or principles you will use in the analysis You may quote briefly (up to 30
words) from textbooks but should not include ant derivations Refer to your sources by
name and year eg (Seider Seader & Lewin 2003) and give full details in your Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
4 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
reference section (Normally no more than half a page but varies according to the type
of experiment)
III Experimental design methods and procedure
A Description of the apparatus
B Description of the experimental procedure
Provide a drawing of the main apparatus by preferably draw using computer package
otherwise neatly drawn by hand (CBE do not accept photographs and diagrams
from the internet) and present a brief technical description Refer the reader to the
figure that contains the drawing in the same way when referring to tables or graphs Try
to answer the following question in paragraph form what is the apparatus made of
What are its important dimensions What precisely are the instruments How does it
work
Provide a concise chronological description of the laboratory procedure in paragraph
form explaining the intention of the experiment and what you actually did why were
samples taken How were they taken
Use proper past tense and passive voice For example „‟the temperature was
measured‟‟ or „‟ the samples were tested‟‟ To add clarity to your description use proper
transitional „‟sign post‟‟ words to indicate sequence for example step 1 step 2 first
second after that next finally
Avoid putting any results of the experiment in the methods but include the methods you
used in gathering and analysing the data
IV Analysis of results and discussion
A Method of analysis
B Presentation of results
C Discussion of results
D Suggestion for future improvement (optional)
Describe the overall findings of the experiment in one or two sentences Make sure you
present your data appropriately in tables graphs or any other figures then write a
paragraph about each visual including a summary of the trend (in one or two sentences)
and support the summary by adding specific details from the visuals that are important
for understanding the results Refer appropriately to the visuals in the paragraph (table Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
5 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
1 figure 2 etc) Report the data from the experiment only avoid any explanations and
conclusions about the data at this point
Start your discussion by a statement to explain what the results mean and whether
they support do not support your hypothesis (in the introduction) Refer to specific data
from the findings as evidence as to whether or not the hypothesis is supported Use
what you have learned about the scientific concept of the experiment to explain
convincingly whether or not the data support the hypothesis Include any relevant
observations any problems that occurred or any sources of uncertainty in the
experiment procedure Give explanations for the difference in findings when you
compare the data with the findings of other students Make suggestions for improving
the experiment
V Conclusion
A Summary of the results
B Relevance of the results to the questions raised in the introduction
State directly what you have learned about the scientific concept of the experiment from
doing the lab This should be limited to what evidence the experiment provides It
should be a summary of the results and it should always reflect the questions posed in
the aims
Scientific writing style a few important points
1 Structure may vary for different courseworks such as lab reports research
project reports (You need to check this with the module leader)
2 Your writing should be in complete grammatically correct sentences
3 Be concise If you can use 1 word instead of a phrase with two or more words
then choose the 1 word (eg get around avoid)
4 Be objective Limit your use of personal pronouns (I you we) emotionally loaded
words (wonderful useless lovely)
5 Do not use contractions (isn‟t doesn‟t it‟s) these are common in speech in
formal writing the full form (is not does not it is) is used
6 Use Harvard style for citations and references (see
httpwwwlibrarydevelopmentgroupshefacukdepartmentengineeringhtml ) Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering 201011
6 Source httpwwwlabwritencsuedu
Edited by Dr D Rossiter CBE 27910
7 When writing the report you write about what you did Therefore actions should
be in the past tense (Say what you did not what you should have done)
8 If there is an apparatus a good description of the apparatus is important make
sure you have
A A neat labelled drawing(s) showing how the apparatus works and any
important detail
B A description of how it works
C Technical specifications and how it can be combined
Style
Scientific reports are usually written in impersonal language the resistance was
measured not we measured the resistance figure 2 shows that or it can be seen
from figure 2 that not you can see from figure 2 that This is probably not a style you
are used to using (and the grammar checker in Word will complain like mad) but it is
the standard approach and we will penalise you if you do not use it The reason for it is
probably that it focuses attention on the results themselves and not on the person who
did the work the implication is that these are results that anybody can reproduce by
repeating the experiment as described This is a cornerstone of scientific enquiry and is
one reason why experimental papers contain details of the experimental method
(here‟s how we did it—go ahead and try it yourself if you don‟t trust us)
Tense in scientific reports is a bit confused normally you use the past tense when
describing what you did (the resistance was measured) so the methods and
analysis sections should be in the past tense On the other hand the background
information and the theory are presumably still true so they are normally in the
present tense (the measurement of stellar masses is a key factor in understanding
stellar structure and evolution) thus the theory and probably the first half of the
introduction (explaining why the experiment is interesting and important) should
be in the present tense Likewise comparisons of results and descriptions of
features of the data should be in the present tense (the results are shown in figure
2 the points in figure 2 lie on a straight line the measured value is in good
agreement with the prediction) Basically do what seems right if you are describing
something that happened in the past use the past if you‟re talking about something
that still exists use the present
《香当网》用户分享的内容，不代表《香当网》观点或立场，请自行判断内容的真实性和可靠性！
该内容是文档的文本内容，更好的格式请下载文档