tubular glass vial USP TPYE I

A vial (also phial) is a relatively small vessel or , especially used to store as liquids, powders or in other forms like . They can also be sample vessels e.g. for use in autosampler devices in analytical .

The glass can be colourless or coloured, clear or amber. There are different types of closure systems, e.g. Screw vials (closed with screw cap or dropper/), Lip vials (closed with cork or plastic ), Crimp vials (closed with a rubber stopper and a metal cap). A vial can have a tubular shape or a bottle-like shape with a neck. The bottom is usually flat unlike which have usually a rounded bottom. Modern vials can be made of plastic (e.g. )