Development of an ombrotrophic peat bog (low ash) reference material for the determination of elemental concentrations

C. Yafa; J. G. Farmer; M. C. Graham; J. R. Bacon; C. Barbante; W. R. L. Cairns; R. Bindler; I. Renberg; A. Cheburkin; H. Emons; M. J. Handley; S. A. Norton; M. Krachler; W. Shotyk; X. D. Li; A. Martinez-Cortizas; I. D. Pulford; V. MacIver; J. Schweyer; E. Steinnes; T. E. Sjøbakk; D. Weiss; A. Dolgopolova; M. Kylander

doi:10.1039/B315647H

Development of an ombrotrophic peat bog (low ash) reference material for the determination of elemental concentrations†

C. Yafa,^a J. G. Farmer,*^a M. C. Graham,^a J. R. Bacon,^b C. Barbante,^cd W. R. L. Cairns,^d R. Bindler,^e I. Renberg,^e A. Cheburkin,^f H. Emons,^gh M. J. Handley,ⁱ S. A. Norton,ⁱ M. Krachler,^j W. Shotyk,^j X. D. Li,^k A. Martinez-Cortizas,^l I. D. Pulford,^m V. MacIver,^m J. Schweyer,ⁿ E. Steinnes,^o T. E. Sjøbakk,^o D. Weiss,^pq A. Dolgopolova^pq and M. Kylander^pq

Author affiliations

* Corresponding authors

^a School of GeoSciences, Joseph Black Building, University of Edinburgh, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, UK
E-mail: J.G.Farmer@ed.ac.uk
Fax: +44 (0)131 650 4757
Tel: +44 (0)131 650 4757

^b Macaulay Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen, UK

^c Department of Environmental Sciences, University Ca' Foscari of Venice, Dorsoduro 2137, 30123 Venice, Italy

^d Institute for the Dynamics of Environmental Processes, CNR, Dorsoduro 2137, 30123 Venice, Italy

^e Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, SE-901 87 Umeå, Sweden

^f Key Analytical, 267 Brebeuf Avenue, Sudbury, Ontario P3C 5H2, Canada

^g Institute for Phytosphere Research, Research Centre Juelich, 52425 Juelich, Germany

^h European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements, Retieseweg, Geel, Belgium

ⁱ Department of Earth Sciences and The Climate Change Institute, 314 Bryand Global Sciences Center, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA

^j Institute of Environmental Geochemistry, University of Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 236, Heidelberg, Germany

^k Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

^l Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, University of Santiago di Compostela, Campus Sur s/n, Santiago di Compostela, Spain

^m Department of Chemistry, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK

ⁿ Geoscience Laboratories, 933 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada

^o Department of Chemistry, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway

^p Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College of London, London, UK

^q Department of Mineralogy, The Natural History Museum, London, UK

Abstract

Given the increasing interest in using peat bogs as archives of atmospheric metal deposition, the lack of validated sample preparation methods and suitable certified reference materials has hindered not only the quality assurance of the generated analytical data but also the interpretation and comparison of peat core metal profiles from different laboratories in the international community. Reference materials play an important role in the evaluation of the accuracy of analytical results and are essential parts of good laboratory practice. An ombrotrophic peat bog reference material has been developed by 14 laboratories from nine countries in an inter-laboratory comparison between February and October 2002. The material has been characterised for both acid-extractable and total concentrations of a range of elements, including Al, As, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, P, Pb, Ti, V and Zn. The steps involved in the production of the reference material (i.e. collection and preparation, homogeneity and stability studies, and certification) are described in detail.

Journal of Environmental Monitoring

Development of an ombrotrophic peat bog (low ash) reference material for the determination of elemental concentrations†

Abstract

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Development of an ombrotrophic peat bog (low ash) reference material for the determination of elemental concentrations

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