Better practices for pollutants analysis in complex solid matrices (waste, soils and contaminated materials)

Summary

A wide variety of reference texts (technical manuals, standards, internal laboratory procedures) are available to answer the problems posed by the metrology of complex solid matrices (waste, sludge, polluted soils and materials). These sources of information, however recent, have several major drawbacks:
- they do not cover all the parameters prescribed by the regulations on polluted waste and soil,
- their field of application is not always compatible with the nature of the matrices being studied,
- the upstream phases of chemical analysis (conditioning, conservation, sub-sampling, preparation, extraction, mineralisation, digestion, etc.) are rarely covered,
- finally, they have not all been given the same attention in terms of reliability, reproducibility, sensitivity, robustness, etc.

At the same time, standards are evolving, and regulatory requirements may no longer be appropriate, either because the recommended standard has disappeared or because of the existence of a more recent standard. The aim of this study is to make a practical contribution to drawing up a guide to best analysis practice for ten targeted "pollutants" in complex matrices, which can be used directly by the players concerned (manufacturers, consultancies, government departments, ADEME, laboratories, etc.). The results of the study are set out in a data sheet for each pollutant. These data sheets set out detailed recommendations on best practice for analysing the pollutant. Each data sheet describes the nature of the problem posed by the pollutant and the relevant regulations, gives a description of the pollutant (description, physicochemical and behavioural properties, hazards), describes the analysis methods prescribed by the regulations as well as other existing methods, and points out interferences and extraction yields when these are known. For certain parameters, recommendations are made by experts. The topics covered are as follows: - chlorinated solvents - hydrocarbons - polychlorinated biphenyls - dissolution of mercury and other volatile metals - chromium speciation - sulphur speciation - arsenic speciation - TOC - methods for dissolving mineral elements by mineralisation and alkaline fusion - microbiological and parasitological parameters of sludge.