Various metals exist in our environment. Some are necessary and harmless, such as nutrients like calcium and iron, while others, such as arsenic, lead and mercury, can cause adverse health effects. If heavy metal contamination is suspected in water, soil or building materials, ARA can help determine the levels of contamination.
Concentrations of most metals are determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma – Mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The ICP is used to ionize a sample into its constituent elements, the mass spectrometer separates these elements by mass and the intensity of signal at each mass provides concentration information.
Mercury is analyzed by cold vapor atomic absorption (CV-AA). This sensitive analysis detects mercury by measuring the absorption of light by Mercury in an elemental gaseous state.
Methods 6020 (ICP-MS) and 7470/7471 (Mercury) are used when analyzing surface water, ground water and solid matrices.
Methods 200.8 (ICP-MS) and 245.1 (Mercury) are used for drinking water and wastewater samples.
Aqueous samples can be analyzed for either total or dissolved metals. When “Total Metals” is requested, a digestion process is performed on the sample, resulting in a concentration including both dissolved and suspended analyte.
“Dissolved metals” samples must be filtered prior to receipt at the lab. The concentration that is in solution will be detected and reported.
Solid samples always require digestion prior to analysis.
The following is a list of methods and parameters for Metals Analysis. Please contact us if you have questions regarding specific analytes or methods.
Metals
EPA 200.8 Metals by ICP-MS
EPA 245.1 Mercury by AA
SW-846 6020 Metals by ICP-MS
SW-846 7470 & 7471 Mercury by CV-AA
RCRA 8 Metals Include:
Arsenic (As), Barium (Ba), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Lead (Pb), Mercury (Hg), Selenium (Sg), and Silver (Ag)
The Following Metals are Commonly Reported:
Aluminum
Antimony
Arsenic
Barium
Beryllium
Boron
Cadmium
Calcium
Chromium
Cobalt
Copper
Gold
Iron
Lead
Lithium
Magnesium
Manganese
Mercury
Molybdenum
Nickel
Phosphorus
Potassium
Selenium
Silicon
Silver
Sodium
Strontium
Thallium
Tin
Titanium
Uranium
Vanadium
Zinc