Sieve Reference Materials & Calibration Standards

Match the Reference to the Sieve Range

Sieve reference materials check a sieve's performance using particles of known size distribution. Match the material's opening range to the sieve being checked: a No. 6 sieve needs a different standard than a No. 325 sieve. Selecting the wrong range wastes the material and produces no valid check.

The category includes Whitehouse sieve standards for No. 6 (3.35mm) sieves and NIST glass bead sets such as #10 to #20, #45 to #140 and #325 to #635. Confirm the range, vial size and quantity on each listing before ordering.

Check Documentation and Traceability Claims

Reference materials differ in what their documentation actually states. Some listings identify traceability to national standards; Whitehouse standards describe traceability to NIST, NPL and BCR and a BCR recognition for producing European Community standards. Confirm which claims apply to the exact product and whether the supplied documentation satisfies your quality system.

Do not treat all bead sets as interchangeable certified standards. Verify the certificate, calibration graph or other documents supplied with the chosen set, and keep them with your records as the procedure requires.

Use Standards as Designed

Follow the instructions supplied with the reference material: sample handling, sieving conditions and how to read the result. The Whitehouse No. 6 listing, for example, describes five single-use vials, quantities needed for different sieve diameters and an included calibration graph. Those specifics apply to that standard, not to every bead set.

Reference materials are consumables or services for verification tasks. Flow agents, which help material move across a screen, are not reference standards; treat listings such as the sieving flow agent as processing aids, not calibration tools.

Separate Reference Materials from Inspection Tools

Visual and dimensional checks belong with sieve inspection tools; performance checks with known particles belong here. For cement fineness verification, the category includes NIST SRM 114r Portland cement fineness material; confirm its intended procedure before ordering.

For the sieves these standards verify, compare ASTM test sieves and ISO test sieves. Keep verification records with the sieve and standard involved, and replace consumables as your procedure directs.