Lab Dilution Planner — Serial Dilutions

Plan clear, step-by-step dilutions. Choose Auto to go from stock → target (with pipette limits), or build a Ladder (e.g., 10-fold across N tubes). Private by design—everything runs locally.

Inputs

required
same family
last step
each intermediate
defaults to 10%
fold per step
applies to each transfer
safety cap
friendlier steps
hit exact target

Results

Overview
Overall dilution \(D=C_\mathrm{stock}/C_\mathrm{target}\): —
Steps: —
Factors: —
Plan
—
Notes

Worked examples

Auto (antibody): Stock 1 mg/mL → target 1 µg/mL, final 10 mL, step volume 1 mL, limits 2–1000 µL, snap common. A 10× then 100× plan is typical; final tube is prepared to the working volume with ~10% overfill.

Ladder: 10-fold, 8 tubes, 1 mL per tube → transfer 100 µL, add 900 µL diluent each step.

How this planner works

  • Auto: Computes \(D = C_s/C_t\), searches for a small integer step count \(n\) and friendly per-step factor \(f\) so \(f^{n-1}\cdot f_n = D\). It respects transfer limits (min/max µL) via \(V_\text{transfer} = V_\text{total}/f\), and lets the last step flex to hit the exact target if needed.
  • Ladder: Uses a fixed fold \(f\) with \(N\) tubes. For each tube: transfer \(V/f\) from previous, add diluent to total \(V\). Concentration divides by \(f\) each step.

Sanity check: the product of all step factors should equal \(D\). If it doesn’t, the tool won’t accept the plan.

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