symposium on inorganic analytical chemistry in environmental research and protection

3
trendc in analytical chemistry, vol. 3, no. 4, 1984 XIX . Improved productivity through better management A report of the Fourth Annual Conference of the Analytical Laboratory Manager’s Association, held in West Lafayette, IN, USA, October 1983. Improved productivity through better management in the laboratory was the general theme of the Fourth Annual Conference of the Analytical Labora- tory Manager’s Association (ALMA), which was co-hosted by Jon Amy, Bill Baitinger and the Chemistry Depart- ment at Purdue University. ALMA is composed of a group of academic, industrial and government analytical laboratory managers who gather each year to discuss problems and solutions common to the operation of both large and small analytical laboratories. This year, management techniques used in the analytical laboratories of Owens-Corning Fiberglas, The University of Oklahoma Chemistry Department, and Eli Lilly and Com- pany were focused upon, with general applications made to all laboratories. For instance, in a talk about a review of the cost of analysis, by Bill Baitinger (Purdue), it was learned that a total laboratory overhead of about $70 per productive man-hour was not unusual for industrial and academic analytical laboratories. It was generally agreed that many users of analytical services, such as NMR, MS, X-ray diffraction, etc. were totally unaware of the real costs of providing such services. Indeed, an average cost for many of the laboratories represented including everything (salaries, overheads, de- preciation, utilities, etc.) bordered on $100 000 per man-year! With that kind of an investment, the reasons for emphasis on productive management became clear. It was felt strongly that due to the high cost of major analytical systems, the trend is definitely toward more centralization and pooling of large equipment. It is also a fact that universities and industries which have good centralized research instrumentation facilities can offer more to each other when looking for joint industrial/academic projects. Another area to which ALMA 01659936/84/$02.00. turned its attention was purchasing considerations for scientific equip- ment. The whole topic of specifying major instrumentation was addressed. Since major systems are becoming increasingly complex, the system must be considered in terms of hardware, software, documentation, service, applications support, parts support, etc. Often a decision is made to purchase system ‘A’ rather than system ‘B’ on the basis of how well it compared in only one of the above mentioned areas, without proper con- sideration being given to the total picture. Software, for instance, can take many man-years to develop but is often overlooked by buyers. Some questions a purchaser should ask about software are: does the vendor offer source listings, timely revisions and/or software updates? Is the software written in a language which is easily modified and/or reasonably portable? Is complete documentation of the software available? Similar questions should be asked about hardware and service, etc. Other topics addressed at this year’s conference included management methods of motivating and training technical staff and a presentation was given by selected instrument manufac- turers about what they think future needs will be in the analytical laboratory. Instrument manufacturers seem to be keying their efforts toward refinement of present instrument capability. Increased computerization along with accompanying software updating appears to be the trend, with emphasis on software portability. Interfacing of existing equipment to Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS), increased modular- ization of equipment, and improved current instrument reliability are both short and long term goals for many instrument manufacturers. The next ALMA conference will be held in October, 1984. Dr Tom Erickson, Analytical Laboratory Director for the Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation, was selected as chairman-elect of ALMA for the coming year. Membership information requests about ALMA should be directed to: Dr Jane Strouse, Depart- ment of Chemistry, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA. THOMAS LYTTLE Dr T. Lyttle is the Manager of the Research Znstrument Services Group at the Department of Chkstry, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA. Environmental research and protection Report on the Symposium on Inor- ganic Analytical Chemistry in Environmental Research and Protec- tion, held in Jiilich, FRG, from the 13th to the 18th June, 1983. The Nuclear Research Centre in Jiilich, the GDCh-Division of Analyti- cal Chemistry, the Discussion Circle of Analytical Chemistry in Environmen- tal Protection (DAU) and the Associa- tion for Micro-analysis of the Elements (AMSEL) organized this excellent symposium under the chairmanship of Prof. Dr Hans Wolfgang Niirnberg. About 250 participants attended and discussed 48 oral and 37 poster presentations. Niirnberg mentioned in the opening address that good analyti- cal chemistry is essential for serious and responsible ecotoxicology and that it is a challenge to produce correct data for use in other institutes and administration offices. This sym- posium provided a survey of the status, latest developments, potential and limits of analytical methodology, based on studies of results from environmental analysis. L. Mart (Jiilich) received the award of the GDCh-Division of Analytical Chemistry. In his brilliant speech about the distribution of cadmium in the North Sea and in the polar seas he explained how samples are taken. Preparation of sampling bottles, sam- pling, filtration, preparation of ali- quots, storage, UV-irradation and voltammetric determination are @ 1984 Elswier Science Publishers B.V.

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Page 1: Symposium on inorganic analytical chemistry in environmental research and protection

trendc in analytical chemistry, vol. 3, no. 4, 1984 XIX .

Improved productivity through better management

A report of the Fourth Annual Conference of the Analytical Laboratory Manager’s Association, held in West Lafayette, IN, USA, October 1983.

Improved productivity through better management in the laboratory was the general theme of the Fourth Annual Conference of the Analytical Labora- tory Manager’s Association (ALMA), which was co-hosted by Jon Amy, Bill Baitinger and the Chemistry Depart- ment at Purdue University. ALMA is composed of a group of academic, industrial and government analytical laboratory managers who gather each year to discuss problems and solutions common to the operation of both large and small analytical laboratories.

This year, management techniques used in the analytical laboratories of Owens-Corning Fiberglas, The University of Oklahoma Chemistry Department, and Eli Lilly and Com- pany were focused upon, with general applications made to all laboratories. For instance, in a talk about a review of the cost of analysis, by Bill Baitinger (Purdue), it was learned that a total laboratory overhead of about $70 per productive man-hour was not unusual for industrial and academic analytical laboratories.

It was generally agreed that many users of analytical services, such as NMR, MS, X-ray diffraction, etc. were totally unaware of the real costs of providing such services. Indeed, an average cost for many of the laboratories represented including everything (salaries, overheads, de- preciation, utilities, etc.) bordered on $100 000 per man-year!

With that kind of an investment, the reasons for emphasis on productive management became clear. It was felt strongly that due to the high cost of major analytical systems, the trend is definitely toward more centralization and pooling of large equipment. It is also a fact that universities and industries which have good centralized research instrumentation facilities can offer more to each other when looking for joint industrial/academic projects.

Another area to which ALMA

01659936/84/$02.00.

turned its attention was purchasing considerations for scientific equip- ment. The whole topic of specifying major instrumentation was addressed. Since major systems are becoming increasingly complex, the system must be considered in terms of hardware, software, documentation, service, applications support, parts support, etc. Often a decision is made to purchase system ‘A’ rather than system ‘B’ on the basis of how well it compared in only one of the above mentioned areas, without proper con- sideration being given to the total picture. Software, for instance, can take many man-years to develop but is often overlooked by buyers. Some questions a purchaser should ask about software are: does the vendor offer source listings, timely revisions and/or software updates? Is the software written in a language which is easily modified and/or reasonably portable? Is complete documentation of the software available? Similar questions should be asked about hardware and service, etc.

Other topics addressed at this year’s conference included management methods of motivating and training technical staff and a presentation was given by selected instrument manufac-

turers about what they think future needs will be in the analytical laboratory. Instrument manufacturers seem to be keying their efforts toward refinement of present instrument capability. Increased computerization along with accompanying software updating appears to be the trend, with emphasis on software portability. Interfacing of existing equipment to Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS), increased modular- ization of equipment, and improved current instrument reliability are both short and long term goals for many instrument manufacturers.

The next ALMA conference will be held in October, 1984. Dr Tom Erickson, Analytical Laboratory Director for the Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation, was selected as chairman-elect of ALMA for the coming year. Membership information requests about ALMA should be directed to: Dr Jane Strouse, Depart- ment of Chemistry, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA.

THOMAS LYTTLE

Dr T. Lyttle is the Manager of the Research Znstrument Services Group at the Department of Chkstry, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA.

Environmental research and protection

Report on the Symposium on Inor- ganic Analytical Chemistry in Environmental Research and Protec- tion, held in Jiilich, FRG, from the 13th to the 18th June, 1983.

The Nuclear Research Centre in Jiilich, the GDCh-Division of Analyti- cal Chemistry, the Discussion Circle of Analytical Chemistry in Environmen- tal Protection (DAU) and the Associa- tion for Micro-analysis of the Elements (AMSEL) organized this excellent symposium under the chairmanship of Prof. Dr Hans Wolfgang Niirnberg. About 250 participants attended and discussed 48 oral and 37 poster presentations. Niirnberg mentioned in the opening address that good analyti-

cal chemistry is essential for serious and responsible ecotoxicology and that it is a challenge to produce correct data for use in other institutes and administration offices. This sym- posium provided a survey of the status, latest developments, potential and limits of analytical methodology, based on studies of results from environmental analysis.

L. Mart (Jiilich) received the award of the GDCh-Division of Analytical Chemistry. In his brilliant speech about the distribution of cadmium in the North Sea and in the polar seas he explained how samples are taken. Preparation of sampling bottles, sam- pling, filtration, preparation of ali- quots, storage, UV-irradation and voltammetric determination are

@ 1984 Elswier Science Publishers B.V.

Page 2: Symposium on inorganic analytical chemistry in environmental research and protection

xx tmna!~ in analytical chenishy, vol. 3, no. 4, I984

important steps in the determination of cadmium concentrations. Contamina- tion must be carefully avoided when measuring concentrations below 1 p.p.b., but K. Bruland (Santa Cruz) and L. G. Danielson (Goeteborg) have independently achieved results similar to those of Mart.

H. J. Briigge (Hamburg) has developed a method for determining several elements simultaneously in sea water by X-ray fluorescence analysis with the aid of totally reflecting sample carriers. D. Schmidt (Hamburg) had determined mercury concentrations in the North Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Arctic Sea. Since 1973 about 5 000 data points have been obtained for cadmium, copper, iron, manganese and nickel, and about 500 for mercury concentrations in these areas. J. C. Duinker (Kiel) gave a very important introduction to the movement of trace metals in estuaries, taking into account the rapid changes of concentration (also of salt) and mixing parameters (physical, chemical or biological varia- tions, river flow, wind, etc.).

H. Muntau (Ispra) discussed the heavy metal balance of a European aquatic ecosystem, the Italian part of the Lago Maggiore. A simple and specific HPLC-amperometric method for the determination of nitrate and nitrite ions in water was described by M. A. Alawi (Burgwedel). He used the nitrate ions and/or the oxidized nitrite ions for nitration in an excess of phenol, then separated off the nit- rophenol and used electrochemical detection for evaluation.

A. Knochel (Hamburg) discussed the results of an interlaboratory study of river Elbe water, in which 33 working groups compared analytical methods for determination of heavy metals. Highest deviations were found for chromium and arsenic determina- tions, but the results for Cd-, Hg-, Ni-, Br-, and Pb-concentrations also var- ied.

L. Dunemann (Gijttingen) used gel-chromatography and chemically reacting detectors (CAS, Ferrotin, Zincon, Diazo-pNA, UV, etc.) for determination of elemental binding forms in soil waters. The total metal

Soil and soil water studies

contents of the three soil fractions which were studied [determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS)] is composed of free species (which are retained on the gels), stable complexes (which cannot be trans- formed into other complexes) and labile complexes. Concentrations of zinc, aluminium and iron were selec- tively measured.

K. May, (Jillich) decomposed soil and biological samples in specially developed quartz vessels to determine mercury contents in amounts down to 0.2 ng g-l, he used preconcentration on gold wool and a Coleman-Perkin- Elmer MAS.

Air pollution studies D. Klockow (Dortmund) presented

a survey of diffusion controlled air sampling for selective determination of trace elements. According to K. Moehnle (Ulm) little is known about chemical forms of sulphur in air particulates. J. Divisek described a new v~ta!r%rl? SO2/analyser. B. Vierkorn-Rudolph (Jiilich) determined hydrogen chloride and chlorides in rain and air samples, for instance by derivatization with 7_oxabicyclo(4,1 ,O)heptane and sep- aration of the product by gas chromatography, and detecting it with an FID. Detection limits are 10 ng Cl g -l or 0.5 ng Cl absolute. Indirect atomic absorption spectrophotometry is simpler, but Br and I are not differentiated.

F. Meixner (Jiilich) demonstrated a chemiluminisence method for the specific detection of p.p.t. amounts of so2, while A. Voltz of the same Institute used this method for NOx. G. Schmidtke (Freiburg) developed an IRdiode laser spectrometer for gas analysis, which may also be used over long distances.

B. Sansoni (Jiilich) studied the influence of the 1976-reduction of lead in gasoline on lead concentrations in air and dust in Munich. These lead concentrations were found to be about halved, whereas zinc and calcium

H. W. Niirnberg (Jillich) discussed wet deposition of acid and toxic heavy metals in the FRG where the use ofcoal and emissions from the iron and steel industry and from metallurgic fac- tories play an important role.

concentrations did not change. H. Braun (Karlsruhe) found that up to now gaseous metal fractions had been neglected (although they are quite relevant), while the normal measuring techniques were directed to the deter- mination of metals in dust.

Trace elements in biological samples

M. Grasserbauer discussed micro- analysis for environmental evaluations and medical diagnosis of asbestos. M. Stoeppler (Jiilich) developed a rapid and reliable method for lead determi- nation in blood with graphite furnace-AAS.

H. F. Fehse (Darmstadt) deter- mined nickel in blood and serum with graphite tube-AAS after decomposi- tion with HNO and Triton-X 100; and K. R. Sperling (Hamburg) measured cadmium with a tube-in-tube techni- que using flameless AAS. J. Kiem (Jiilich) determined zinc in thrombo- cytes using AAS. B. Sansoni (Jiilich) developed a reliable tracer method for determining lead concentrations in blood using G-AAS and H.-J. Pesch (Erlangen) directly determined cad- mium in human organ samples with Zeeman-AAS. E. Waidman (Jiilich) determined cadmium, lead and thal- lium in reference materials with mass spectrometric isotope dilution techni- ques (MS-IDA).

H. P. Bertram (Miinster) discussed his experience with electrothermal AAS in dealing with 30 different human (organic) reference samples stored for long periods at -85°C to - 190°C. For each sample type a different analytical programme was elaborated. Multi-element data for toxic metals and for metals interfering with them were collected in each case.

R. F. M. Herber (Amsterdam) discussed two IUPAC interlaboratory surveys on cadmium in whole blood. There was an improvement from 1979 to 1981 which can be attributed, at least partly, to the increased use of control materials. H. Muntau (Ispra) presented certified and recommended values in BCR-reference materials like fly ash, aqueous and terrestrial plants and Moroccan phosphate rock for a number of elements, with indication of the methods applied.

P. Schramel (Neuherberg) com-

Page 3: Symposium on inorganic analytical chemistry in environmental research and protection

trends in analytical chemistry, vol. 3, no. 4, I9tH XXI

pared various organisms for their use pollution. G. Wagner (Saarbriicken) as indicators. He discussed how analysed metal concentrations in normal deviation may be distinguished from environmental influences. L.

leaves of poplars for monitoring

Zadory (Saarbriicken) compared environmental pollution.

freshwater molluscs as accumulation E. Steinnes (Gradvoll) is monitoring

indicators for monitoring heavy metal trace element deposition using mosses and had obtained interesting surveys

ofdistribution ofPb, Sb, As, V, Cr, Cu, I, Br and Se.

ERNEST MERIAN

Dr Ernest Merian is at the Intemationul Association of Environmental Analytical Ctumis- try, Im Kirsgarten 22, CH-4106 Then&l, Switzerland.

Acid rain again! reduction in the number of animal and

Report on the VDI-International Con- ference held at Lindau, Lake Con- stance 7-9 June 1983, on Acid Precipitation-Origin and Effects

This conference, organized by the Society of German Engineers, was opened by Dr-Ing. 0. Schwarz, and Prof. Dr A. Dick. 530 participants from 12 countries discussed 50 lectures on this important subject. The Confer- ence was divided into nine sections. 1. Emissions of precursors 2. Transformations in the atmosphere 3. Atmospheric dispersion and trans-

port 4. Dry deposition 5. Measuring techniques (ambient

air) 6. Effects on vegetation 7. Effects on soil 8. Effects on aquatic ecosystems 9. Effects on materials A bibliography (1980-1983) contain- ing 450 abstracts and an index of important authors working in this field is available from VDI.

On the first day interesting meas- urement results and models were presented, but in most cases they were unfortunately not interpreted. Sampl- ing techniques - for instance for sampling cloud and mist water - have made progress, and the latest analyti- cal results must thus have been improved. Unfortunately, the discus- sion at the conference was also too limited in the discussion of to what extent SO2 emissions should be reduced (which is, of course, only one factor to be considered). There was a certain helplessness among the too technologically oriented participants about what should be done, and many of the engineers had already made their own decisions, either in a positive or negative way. The results reached

during the lectures can be briefly summarized as below.

It has just been established that firs (and other trees) are suddenly showing new types of damage. As well as SO2 emissions, which should be reduced anyway, other emissions, diseases and interactions may be causing this damage. There seems to be some correlation between fir damage and magnesium deficiency in the trees, even when there is sufficient mag- nesium in the soil. Information about pH-values of different waters, sampled at different times cannot normally be compared and one should be cautious when interpreting results. Information about the amount of acid present and about acid deposition is more mean- ingful than simple pH-values. Acidili- cation of water in different locations took place to very dissimilar amounts during the last 50-100 years, and the reasons for these differences are not yet understood. It is now clear that some soils are no longer in the ecologically safe bicarbonate buffer region. They have now changed to the aluminium buffer region with the following consequences: aluminium ions in- crease acidity, and are toxic for some organisms (especially for fish), there-

plant species in a region. It has now been recognized that at

some altitudes polluted mist is at least as much of a problem as acid precipitation. The much smaller drop- lets have higher concentrations of total electrolytes. Not enough is known about the effects of snow, which precipitates air pollutants in a particu- larly complete way. About 20-50% of the precipitated acids are concentrated in the bark run off, and then damage soil vegetation below the trees. Evalua- tions of average concentrations or total annual emissions are not conclusive and should not be over emphasized.

While the information available in 1983 was well presented at this conference the sections, lectures and respective discussions did not have enough interdisciplinary organization. The subject was restricted to acid precipitation, as a result not enough was said about other causes of damage to forests. Effects on land organisms, fish, historic buildings and metal constructions were not discussed.

ERNEST MERIAN

Dr Ernest Median is at the international Association of Environmental Analytical Chis- try, Im Kirsgarten 22, CH-4106 Thnuill,

fore such a change may lead to a Switzerland.

TrAC - CONTRIBUTIONS Much of TrAC is written by invited authors. However, if you would like to write a review or major article for the magazine, you should in the first instance, send a title and summary of your proposed contribution to:

Editor, TrAC, Elsevier Scientific Publications BV, (Science and Technology Division) PO Box 330, 1000 AH Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Short items of news, etc. and letters may be sent without prior arrangement.