Method detection limits: Application to organic environmental chemistry data Conference Paper uri icon

abstract

  • The application of the EPA technique to method detection limit (MDL) determination for PAH in sediments and the ACS technique for limit of detection (LOD) in blanks was presented. The MDL determination study following EPA protocol involved the extraction of at least 7 replicate samples and a procedural blank. The mean recovery of the individual PAH, e.g., naphthalene, biphenyl, acenaphthene, anthracene, pyrene, and BaP, spiked into the sediments ranged from 69.1 to 123.7% with an average of 100.8%. The limit of quantitation (LOQ) was higher than the lowest calibration standard for 24% (sic of the 25) of the PAH determined. The blank concentrations ranged from 0.02 to 0.33 ng/g. The MDL and LOD were similar for most PAH analytes. Two exceptions were BaP and perylene, which had the lowest and highest recoveries, respectively. The reason for these differences between the MDL and LOD for these PAH was not apparent. The MDL and the LOD for all PAH were lower than the lowest calibration standard for these analytes. The average concentration of PAH analytes in the lowest calibration standard (0.98 ng/g) was approximately three times higher than the average MDL and average LOD. This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 224th ACS National Meeting (Boston, MA 8/18-22/2002).

published proceedings

  • ACS Division of Environmental Chemistry, Preprints

author list (cited authors)

  • Wade, T. L., Sericano, J. L., Qian, Y., Wolff, G., & Denoux, G.

complete list of authors

  • Wade, TL||Sericano, JL||Qian, Y||Wolff, G||Denoux, G

publication date

  • December 2002