Quality problems in determination of organic compounds in environmental samples, such as PAHs and PCBs

• Published in: TrAC, Trends in analytical chemistry (Regular ed.) Vol. 29; no. 7; pp. 706 - 717
• Main Authors: Konieczka, Piotr, Wolska, Lidia, Namieśnik, Jacek
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier B.V 01.07.2010; Elsevier
• Subjects: Analytical chemistry; Analytical procedure; Applied sciences; Chemistry; Environmental sample; Exact sciences and technology; Global environmental pollution; Interlaboratory comparison; Organic compound; PAH; PCB; Pollution; Polyaromatic hydrocarbon; Polychlorinated biphenyl; Sample preparation; Trace-organic constituent; Polyaromatic hydrocarbon; Sample preparation; PAH; Environmental sample; Organic compound; Interlaboratory comparison; Trace-organic constituent; Analytical procedure; Polychlorinated biphenyl; PCB; Trace analysis; Hydrocarbon; Sample; Polychlorobiphenyls; Interlaboratory comparisons; Polycyclic aromatic compound; Statistics; Inorganic compound; Quality; Environment; Parameter; Organic compounds
• ISSN: 0165-9936; 1879-3142
• DOI: 10.1016/j.trac.2010.03.012

The literature shows that most interlaboratory comparisons deal with determination of inorganic compounds or physico-chemical parameters. The determination of organic compounds, particularly in environmental samples, is still a challenging analytical problem, which is why there are few interlaboratory comparisons on this subject. The amount and the quality of information obtained from interlaboratory comparisons depend on both their organizer (who selects and prepares material for investigation, and provides statistics based on the results of measurements) and participants (who carry out measurements, determine the validation parameters of the relevant analytical procedure, and publish the results of analyses). We discuss the difficulties in determining organic compounds on the basis of our own investigations on polyaromatic hydrocarbons and polychlorinated biphenyls in environmental samples. We present means of overcoming these difficulties as conclusions emerging from the results of interlaboratory comparisons.