UNCERTAINTY in mass calibration

In this paper we give the results of four methods of calculating uncertainty associated with a mass calibration problem, three based on different implementations – the first and second order law of propagation of uncertainty and the Monte Carlo method – of the generally methodology described by the Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement, the fourth based on a Bayesian formulation. Nonlinearities in the model for the calibration problem means that the first order approach can be an unreliable method for evaluating uncertainties, relative to the other three approaches