TY - JOUR A1 - Ammann, Dominic A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Kohl, Anka A1 - Hänisch, Jessica A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Degradation of the ethyl glucuronide content in hair by hydrogen peroxide and a non-destructive assay for oxidative hair treatment using infra-red spectroscopy JF - Forensic science international N2 - The assessment of quantification results of the alcohol abuse marker ethyl glucuronide (EtG) in hair in comparison to the cut-off values for the drinking behavior may be complicated by cosmetic hair bleaching. Thus, the impact of increasing exposure to hydrogen peroxide on the EtG content of hair was investigated. Simultaneously, the change of absorbance in the range of 1000–1100 cm-1 indicative for the oxidation of cystine was investigated non-destructively by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) using pulverized portions of the respective hair samples. Hair samples treated with hydrogen peroxide consistently displayed a significantly increased absorbance at 1040 cm-1 associated with the formation of cysteic acid. The EtG content decreased significantly if the hair was treated with alkaline hydrogen peroxide as during cosmetic bleaching. It could be shown that ATR-FTIR is capable of detecting an exposure to hydrogen peroxide when still no brightening was visible and already before the EtG content deteriorated significantly. Thus, hair samples suspected of having been exposed to oxidative treatment may be checked non-destructively by a readily available technique. This assay is also possible retrospectively after EtG extraction and using archived samples. KW - Hair testing KW - Oxidation KW - Bleaching KW - Cysteic acid KW - HPLC–MS/MS PY - 2014 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2014.07.029 SN - 0379-0738 SN - 1872-6283 VL - 244 SP - 30 EP - 35 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam [u.a.] AN - OPUS4-31755 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ammann, Dominic A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Stability of ethyl glucuronide in hair reference materials after accelerated aging JF - Forensic science international N2 - Two different hair reference materials, one produced from authentic hair displaying an ethyl glucuronide (EtG) content of about 25 pg/mg and one obtained by fortification of blank hair to an EtG level of 85 pg/mg were submitted to accelerated aging between 4 degrees C and 60 degrees C for periods between one and 24 months. Subsequently, the EtG content was determined in the aged samples and untreated reference samples stored at -22 degrees C under repeatability conditions following the so-called isochronous approach. The EtG content remained stable even at 40 degrees C for 24 months and at 60 degrees C over six months. This is in contrast to many organic analytes contained in trace concentrations in diverse matrices. A slight but significant increase of the recovered EtG in case of authentic hair samples having been exposed for 24 months between 4 degrees C and 60 degrees C may be due to a temperature-driven process that allows increased recoveries of the physiologically embedded EtG. KW - Alcohol marker KW - Micropulverization KW - HPLC-MS/MS KW - Fortification KW - Long term stability PY - 2015 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2015.09.015 SN - 0379-0738 SN - 1872-6283 VL - 257 SP - 337 EP - 340 PB - Elsevier Ireland Ldt. CY - Amsterdam [u.a.] AN - OPUS4-34940 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bachmann, H. J. A1 - Bucheli, T. D. A1 - Dieguez-Alonso, A. A1 - Fabbri, D. A1 - Knicker, H. A1 - Schmidt, H.-P. A1 - Ulbricht, A. A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Buscaroli, A. A1 - Buerge, D. A1 - Cross, A. A1 - Dickinson, D. A1 - Enders, A. A1 - Esteves, V.I. A1 - Evangelou, M. W. H. A1 - Fellet, G. A1 - Friedrich, K. A1 - Gasco Guerrero, G. A1 - Glaser, B. A1 - Hanke, U. M. A1 - Hanley, K. A1 - Hilber, I. A1 - Kalderis, D. A1 - Leifeld, J. A1 - Masek, O. A1 - Mumme, J. A1 - Paneque Carmona, M. A1 - Calvelo Pereira, R. A1 - Rees, F. A1 - Rombola, A. G. A1 - de la Rosa, J. M. A1 - Sakrabani, R. A1 - Sohi, S. A1 - Soja, G. A1 - Valagussa, M. A1 - Verheijen, F. A1 - Zehetner, F. T1 - Towards the standardization of biochar analysis: the COST action TD1107 interlaboratory comparison JF - Journal of agricultural and food chemistry N2 - Biochar produced by pyrolysis of organic residues is increasingly used for soil amendment and many other applications. However, analytical methods for its physical and chemical characterization are yet far from being specifically adapted, optimized, and standardized. Therefore, COST Action TD1107 conducted an interlaboratory comparison in which 22 laboratories from 12 countries analyzed three different types of biochar for 38 physical–chemical parameters (macro- and microelements, heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pH, electrical conductivity, and specific surface area) with their preferential methods. The data were evaluated in detail using professional interlaboratory testing software. Whereas intralaboratory repeatability was generally good or at least acceptable, interlaboratory reproducibility was mostly not (20% < mean reproducibility standard deviation < 460%). This paper contributes to better comparability of biochar data published already and provides recommendations to improve and harmonize specific methods for biochar analysis in the future. KW - Biochar KW - Analysis KW - Standardization KW - Ring test KW - Interlaboratory comparison PY - 2016 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.5b05055 SN - 0021-8561 SN - 1520-5118 VL - 64 IS - 2 SP - 513 EP - 527 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Columbus, Ohio AN - OPUS4-35289 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland T1 - Non-invasive cancer detection using volatile biomarkers: Is urine superior to breath? JF - Medical Hypothesis N2 - In recent years numerous reports have highlighted the options of chemical breath analysis with regard to noninvasive cancer detection. Certain volatile organic compounds (VOC) supposedly present in higher amounts or in characteristic patterns have been suggested as potential biomarkers. However, so far no clinical application based on a specific set of compounds appears to exist. Numerous reports on the capability of sniffer dogs and sensor arrays or electronic noses to distinguish breath of cancer patients and healthy controls supports the concept of genuine cancer-related volatile profiles. However, the actual compounds responsible for the scent are completely unknown and there is no correlation with the potential biomarkers suggested on basis of chemical trace analysis. It is outlined that specific features connected with the VOC analysis in breath – namely small concentrations of volatiles, interfering background concentrations, considerable sampling effort and sample instability, impracticability regarding routine application - stand in the way of substantial progress. The underlying chemicalanalytical challenge can only be met considering the severe susceptibility of VOC determination to these adverse conditions. Therefore, the attention is drawn to the needs for appropriate quality assurance/quality control as the most important feature for the reliable quantification of volatiles present in trace concentration. Consequently, the advantages of urine as an alternative matrix for volatile biomarker search in the context of diagnosing lung and other cancers are outlined with specific focus on quality assurance and practicability in clinical chemistry. The headspace over urine samples as the VOC source allows adapting gas chromatographical procedures well-established in water analysis. Foremost, the selection of urine over breath as non-invasive matrix should provide considerably more resilience to adverse effects during sampling and analysis. The most important advantage of urine over breath is seen in the option to partition, dispense, mix, spike, store, and thus to dispatch taylor-made urine samples on demand for quality control measures. Although it is still open at this point if cancer diagnosis supported by non-invasively sampled VOC profiles will ultimately reach clinical application the advantages of urine over breath should significantly facilitate urgently required steps beyond the current proof-of-concept stage and towards standardisation. KW - VOC KW - Breath KW - Urine KW - Lung cancer KW - Volatile organic compounds PY - 2020 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2020.110060 VL - 143 SP - 110060 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-51066 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Altmann, Korinna A1 - Sommerfeld, Thomas A1 - Braun, Ulrike T1 - Quantification of microplastics in a freshwater suspended organic matter using different thermoanalytical methods – outcome of an interlaboratory comparison JF - Journal of Analytical and Applied Pyrolysis N2 - A sedimented freshwater suspended organic matter fortified with particles of polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) was employed in an interlaboratory comparison of thermoanalytical methods for microplastics identification and quantification. Three laboratories performed pyrolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS), three others provided results using thermal extraction desorption followed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (TED-GC-MS). One participant performed thermogravimetry-infrared spectroscopy (TGA-FTIR) and two participants used thermogravimetry coupled to mass spectrometry (TGA-MS). Further participants used differential scanning microscopy (DSC), a procedure based on micro combustion calorimetry (MCC) and a procedure based on elemental analysis. Each participant employed a different combination of sample treatment, calibration and instrumental Settings for polymer identification and quantification. Though there is obviously room for improvements regarding the between-laboratory reproducibility and the harmonization of procedures it was seen that the participants Performing Py-GC-MS, TED-GC-MS, and TGA-FTIR were able to correctly identify all polymers and to report reasonable quantification results in the investigated concentration range (PE: 20.0 μg/mg, PP: 5.70 μg/mg; PS: 2.20 μg/mg, PET: 18.0 μg/mg). Although for the other methods limitations exists regarding the detection of specific polymers, they showed potential as alternative approaches for polymer quantification in solid environmental matrices. KW - Interlaboratory comparison KW - Microplastics KW - Suspended organic matter KW - Pyrolysis PY - 2020 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaap.2020.104829 VL - 148 SP - 1 EP - 6 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-50977 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Buge, Hans-Gerhard A1 - Bremser, Wolfram A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Mineral oil content in sediments and soils: comparability, traceability and a certified reference material for quality assurance JF - Analytical and bioanalytical chemistry N2 - The performance of twelve laboratories with previously established proficiency in the determination of the mineral oil content in a fresh water sediment is described. The summation parameter total petrol hydrocarbon (TPH) is defined according to ISO 16703:2004 with regard to the sample preparation to be applied, the flame ionisation detection (FID) and the boiling range of C10–C40 to be integrated. Comprehensive tests of homogeneity and stability have been carried out on the candidate material using appropriate models. The outcome of the study served as the basis for the certification of the candidate reference material as ERM-CC015a. The certified mass fraction is 1,820±130mgkg-1 and traceability was established by using an appropriate calibration standard certified for the mass fraction of C10–C40. The interlaboratory scatter of measurement results in this exercise can largely be explained by the variability of the individual calibrations based on this common calibration standard. KW - Total petroleum hydrocarbons KW - Extraction KW - Gas chromatography KW - Calibration KW - Interlaboratory study PY - 2006 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-006-0423-4 SN - 1618-2642 SN - 1618-2650 VL - 385 IS - 3 SP - 645 EP - 651 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-12399 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Buge, Hans-Gerhard A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - The determination of adsorbable organically bound halogens (AOX) in soil: interlaboratory comparisons and reference materials JF - Accreditation and quality assurance N2 - The interlaboratory variability in the quantification of adsorbable organically bound halogens (AOX) in industrially contaminated soil is presented. Three consecutive rounds of a proficiency testing scheme, in which between 88 and 119 routine laboratories participated, yielded relative reproducibility standard deviations between 7 and 20% at AOX contents between 10.9 and 268 mg kg-1. Nineteen laboratories with established proficiency were invited to participate in the certification of the AOX content in three soil reference materials meant for the internal quality control in analytical laboratories. The certified values are (1349 ± 59) mg kg-1, (80 ± 7) mg kg-1 and (102 ± 8) mg kg-1, respectively. KW - Certified reference materials KW - European Reference Material KW - Proficiency testing KW - Organohalogen compounds KW - Summation parameter PY - 2007 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00769-007-0308-z SN - 0949-1775 SN - 1432-0517 VL - 12 IS - 12 SP - 647 EP - 651 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-16670 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Buge, Hans-Gerhard A1 - Win, Tin T1 - Determination of pentachlorphenol (PCP) in waste wood - method comparison by a collaborative trial JF - Chemosphere N2 - Two independently developed and validated procedures for the determination of pentachlorophenol (PCP) in waste wood were compared by means of a collaborative trial. Both methods foresee quantification of PCP by gas chromatography (GC-ECD) after acetylation and differ with regard to the use of methanol or toluene/sulphuric acid, respectively, as solvent in the sonication extraction step. Test samples with established analyte homogeneity were prepared from a ground “real life” starting material. A total of 23 participating laboratories with experience in wood preservative analysis were instructed to apply both methods to three levels of content in the range of 0.5–20 mg PCP/kg. In case of the toluene/sulphuric acid extraction, lower recoveries and higher interlaboratory dispersion of results at the higher PCP contents were observed. Seen against the background of the Horwitz equation a reproducibility standard deviation of not, vert, similar19% for the methanol extraction at the 4.5 mg/kg level meets the requirement for a sound analytical method. Thus, the sonication extraction procedure with methanol has been annexed as a reference method to the German waste wood regulation. KW - Extraction KW - Derivatisation KW - Sonication KW - Analysis KW - Gas chromatography KW - Regulation PY - 2002 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/S0045-6535(02)00004-8 SN - 0045-6535 SN - 0366-7111 VL - 47 SP - 1001 EP - 1006 PB - Elsevier Science CY - Kidlington, Oxford AN - OPUS4-1628 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Dorgerloh, Ute A1 - Helmis, M. A1 - Mumme, J. A1 - Diakité, M. A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Hydrothermally carbonized plant materials: Patterns of volatile organic compounds detected by gas chromatography JF - Bioresource technology N2 - The nature and concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in chars generated by hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) is of concern considering their application as soil amendment. Therefore, the presence of VOCs in solid HTC products obtained from wheat straw, biogas digestate and four woody materials was investigated using headspace gas chromatography. A variety of potentially harmful benzenic, phenolic and furanic volatiles along with various aldehydes and ketones were identified in feedstock- and temperature-specific patterns. The total amount of VOCs observed after equilibration between headspace and char samples produced at 270 °C ranged between 2000 and 16,000 µg/g (0.2–1.6 wt.%). Depending on feedstock 50–9000 µg/g of benzenes and 300–1800 µg/g of phenols were observed. Substances potentially harmful to soil ecology such as benzofurans (200–800 µg/g) and p-cymene (up to 6000 µg/g in pine wood char) exhibited concentrations that suggest restrained application of fresh hydrochar as soil amendment or for water purification. KW - Hydrochar KW - Mass spectrometry KW - Flame ionization detection KW - Phenols KW - Benzenes PY - 2013 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2012.12.102 SN - 0960-8524 SN - 1873-2976 VL - 130 SP - 621 EP - 628 PB - Elsevier Applied Science CY - Barking, Essex AN - OPUS4-27616 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Dorgerloh, Ute A1 - Paulke, E. A1 - Mumme, J. A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Hydrothermal carbonization of biomass: Major organic components of the aqueous phase JF - Chemical engineering & technology N2 - Process waters obtained from hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) of wheat straw, a biogas digestate derived thereof, and four woody biomass feedstocks were quantified regarding the total organic carbon (TOC) and selected organic compounds. HTC runs revealed that TOC loads were largely unaffected by process severity or type of feedstock whereas the C2–C6 fatty acids, determined by GC, displayed clear effects of temperature and feedstock. HPLC demonstrated simultaneously the initial increase and subsequent consumption of cellulose-derived furfural and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural as well as the increase of the lignin-derived 2-methoxyphenol. 2-Methylbenzofuran, an example for a substance potentially harmful to aquatic biota, was observed in high concentration in the HTC liquor from wheat straw-based feedstocks. KW - Furfurals KW - Gas chromatography KW - Liquid chromatography KW - Phenols KW - Process water KW - Total organic carbon PY - 2014 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/ceat.201300401 SN - 0930-7516 SN - 1521-4125 VL - 37 IS - 3 SP - 511 EP - 518 PB - Wiley-VCH Verl. CY - Weinheim AN - OPUS4-30333 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Dorgerloh, Ute A1 - Sauer, Andreas A1 - Hofmann, Andrea T1 - Quality control in extended measurement campaigns: selection of contract laboratories by proficiency testing exemplified for the trace analysis of anilines in groundwater JF - Accreditation and quality assurance N2 - An interlaboratory comparison for the determination of aniline, nine methylated anilines and chlorinated anilines in contaminated groundwater (each compound between 1 µg L-1 and 750 µg L-1) was conducted as proficiency test for the selection of contract laboratories for a groundwater monitoring campaign. For the 13 participants, two different test sample series were prepared from a stabilized real case groundwater. Series A was the groundwater as sampled in the field and series B was prepared from series A by spiking with selected anilines. Homogeneity and stability investigations revealed that contaminated groundwater provides a viable basis for the preparation of ring test samples for the determination of anilines. Analytical procedures were limited to the standardized liquid–liquid extraction or solid-phase extraction in combination with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (DIN 38407-16:1999). The robust consensus values were evaluated according to the standardized protocol of DIN 38402-45:2013. Robust reproducibility standard deviations ranged largely between 20?% and 60?% depending on the analyte. The proficiency assessment of individual participants combined the qualitative aspect of correct peak identification with the quantitative determination of individual concentrations within set limits in a unified approach. It could be shown that the accreditation status of laboratory and the existence of a standardized analytical procedure do not substitute a problem-related proficiency assessment of potential contractors. KW - Aniline KW - Chloroanilines KW - Methylanilines KW - Groundwater KW - Interlaboratory comparison KW - Proficiency test PY - 2014 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00769-014-1072-5 SN - 0949-1775 SN - 1432-0517 N1 - Geburtsname von Sauer, Andreas: Buchholz, A. - Birth name of Sauer, Andreas: Buchholz, A. VL - 19 IS - 5 SP - 371 EP - 376 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-31756 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Dorgerloh, Ute A1 - Theißen, H. A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Stabilisation of groundwater samples for the quantification of organic trace pollutants JF - Environmental science : processes & impacts N2 - The concentration of contaminants in groundwater samples can be decreased by degradation in the time course between field sampling and quantification in the laboratory, especially in samples from sites where degradation activity is enhanced by remediation measures. The sampling sites covered a variety of priority organic pollutants such as volatile aromatic and chlorinated compounds, phenols and petroleum hydrocarbons and different remediation strategies such as anaerobic and aerobic microbial in situ degradation, in situ chemical oxidation, and on-site purification with biological treatment. The stability of the contaminants' concentration was investigated over a time range of several hours without cooling in the autosampler of the analytical equipment (short term) and over several days of storage until analysis (long term). A number of stabilisation techniques suggested in international standards ISO 5667-3:2013 and ASTM D6517:2000 were compared both with regard to short term and long term stabilisation of the contaminants and their practicability for field sampling campaigns. Long term storage turned out to be problematic for most compound groups even under cooling. Short term stability was problematic also for volatiles such as benzenic aromates, naphthalene and volatile organic halogenated compounds to be analysed by headspace gas chromatography. Acidification (pH <2) was sufficient to prevent degradation of benzenic aromates, naphthalene, phenols and petrol hydrocarbons for up to seven days. The use of acids was not applicable to stabilise volatiles in waters rich in carbonates and sulphides due to stripping of the volatiles with the liberated gases. The addition of sodium azide was successfully used for stabilisation of volatile organic halogenated compounds. KW - Groundwater KW - Sampling KW - Organic pollutants KW - Stabilisation KW - Analysis PY - 2013 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c3em00332a SN - 2050-7887 SN - 2050-7895 VL - 15 IS - 12 SP - 2329 EP - 2337 PB - RSC Publ. CY - CambridgeRSC Publ. AN - OPUS4-29689 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Heyn, L. A1 - Jung, Christian T1 - Indoor exposure to airborne polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: A comparison of stir bar sorptive extraction and pump sampling JF - Engineering Reports N2 - Stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) was compared with standardized pump sampling regarding the prospects to assess airborne levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in indoor environments. A historic railway water tower, which will be preserved as a technical monument for museum purposes, was sampled with both approaches because the built-in insulationmaterial was suspected to release PAHs to the indoor air. The 16 PAHs on the US EPA list were quantified using gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection in filters from pump sampling after solvent extraction and on SBSE devices after thermal desorption. SBSEwas seen to sample detectable PAHmasseswith excellent repeatability and a congener pattern largely similar to that observed with pump sampling. Congener patterns were however significantly different from that in the PAH source because release from the insulation material is largely triggered by the respective congener vapor pressures. Absolute masses in the ng range sampled by SBSE corresponded to airborne concentrations in the ng L−1 range determined by pump sampling. Principle differences between SBSE and pump sampling as well as prospects of SBSE as cost-effective and versatile complement of pump sampling are discussed. KW - Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons KW - Adsorption KW - Extraction KW - Indoor air PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-537427 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/eng2.12419 VL - 3 IS - 12 SP - 1 EP - 10 PB - John Wiley & Sons Ltd. AN - OPUS4-53742 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Koch, Matthias A1 - Lehnik-Habrink, Petra A1 - Nehls, Irene T1 - Quantification of polychlorinated biphenyls in plastic granulates from the recycling of cables - Reference materials and interlaboratory comparison JF - Chemosphere N2 - A procedure for the quantification of the PCB marker congeners 28, 52, 101, 138, 153, 180 in plastic waste form the recycling of cables in the range of content between 0.1 mg kg-1 and 20 mg kg-1 was validated. Representative reference materials for laboratory analyses were produced using granulates from different recycling processes. The method development included aspects of grinding, sieving, homogenising as well as the comparison of extraction methods and chromatographic conditions. The validated procedure foresees grinding of the technical sample to an upper particle size limit of 0.50 mm followed by extraction with an unpolar solvent such as n-hexane and gas chromatographic determination. LOD and LOQ for individual congeners ranged between 0.01 mg kg-1 and 0.08 mg kg-1. Electron capture detection (ECD) and mass selective detection (MS) were equivalent if chromatographic conditions were appropriately selected. The application of MS was advantageous in presence of significant amounts of interfering components which have been found in some cables. Three reference materials containing the marker congeners in the range of 0.1 mg kg-1–5 mg kg-1 were submitted to a final validation intercomparison with 23 selected field laboratories using the developed method. Relative reproducibility standard deviations varied between 15% and 33%. KW - PCB KW - Waste KW - Analysis KW - Method validation KW - Standardisation PY - 2006 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2006.02.035 SN - 0045-6535 SN - 0366-7111 VL - 65 IS - 9 SP - 1652 EP - 1659 PB - Elsevier Science CY - Kidlington, Oxford AN - OPUS4-14050 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Koch, Matthias A1 - Wachholz, Sigrid A1 - Win, Tin T1 - Quantification of total petrol hydrocarbons (TPH) in soil by IR-spectrometry and gas chromatography - conclusions from three proficiency testing rounds JF - Accreditation and quality assurance N2 - Due to the utilisation of 1,1,2-trichlorotrifluoroethane (CFE) as extraction solvent the IR-spectrometric determination of total petrol hydrocarbon (TPH) in soil according to ISO/TR 11046 has been replaced by gas chromatography/flame ionisation detection (GC/FID) after extraction with a halogen-free solvent according to ISO/DIS 16703:2001. The results obtained with both methods by field laboratories in three proficiency testing (PT) rounds are compared. The consensus means obtained with GC/FID are typically 10%-20% (ranging between 0% and 25%) higher than those found with IR-spectroscopy. On the contrary, coefficients of variation (CV) are roughly double in case of GC/FID and are briefly discussed against the background of the Horwitz equation. KW - Hydrocarbons KW - Soil KW - IR spectrometry KW - Gas chromatography KW - Interlaboratory comparison PY - 2002 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00769-002-0476-9 SN - 0949-1775 SN - 1432-0517 VL - 7 IS - 7 SP - 286 EP - 289 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-1627 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Nehls, Irene A1 - Buge, Hans-Gerhard T1 - Referenzmaterialien für Umweltanalysen JF - GIT : Labor-Fachzeitschrift PY - 2001 SN - 0016-3538 IS - 45 SP - 1089 EP - 1091 PB - GIT-Verlag CY - Darmstadt AN - OPUS4-1186 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Nehls, Irene A1 - Dorgerloh, Ute T1 - Interlaboratory comparisons - demonstrating degree of equivalence JF - Accreditation and quality assurance N2 - The role of matrix reference materials in the process of demonstrating the degree of equivalence of measurement results obtained from intercomparisons is outlined, reviewing exemplary selected experience gained at BAM regarding the determination of organic contaminants in environmental matrices. The specific characteristics of reference materials employed in the process of demonstrating equivalence between laboratories in the course of proficiency testing as well as the development, comparison and validation of methods are elaborated. The demand is for series of appropriately characterised samples which are fit for the purpose and it is seen from representative examples that the utilisation of such tailor-made RM designed to tackle the specific need of an analytical problem dominates over certified matrix reference materials in this context. Concluding, the role of certified matrix reference materials in quality assurance is briefly looked at both from the user’s and providers’ points of view. KW - Certification KW - Equivalence KW - Method development KW - Proficiency testing KW - Reference materials PY - 2003 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00769-003-0580-5 SN - 0949-1775 SN - 1432-0517 VL - 8 SP - 150 EP - 155 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-2848 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Reck, Günter A1 - Radeglia, Reiner A1 - Springer, A. A1 - Schulz, Burkhard T1 - Designed self-assembly of a bimolecular calix[4]resorcinarene capsule held together by hydrogen bonds JF - Journal of molecular structure N2 - The X-ray crystallographic study of the macrocyclic tetrakis-N[N-2-hydroxyethyl-piperazino]calix[4]resorcinarene·3CH3CH2OH·H2O (3) reveals a self-assembled dimeric capsule-like complex held together by an array of intermolecular hydrogen bonds. Pairs of concave molecules associate directly in bowl-to-bowl fashion and enclose an accessible supramolecular cavity of Å3 hosting one water and three ethanol molecules. The supramolecular arrangement displays alternating layers of facing bowls and interlocking lower rim aliphatic moieties. The helical conformation of the 2-hydroxyethyl piperazinomethyl moieties displays chirality of a bimolecular capsule frozen in the solid state. 3 crystallises in the triclinic space group P-1 with two symmetry independent molecules in the asymmetric unit. Two enantiomeric capsules form a racemic pair in the unit cell. KW - Hydrogen bonded molecular capsule KW - Conformational chirality KW - Calix[4]resorcinarenes KW - Crystal structure PY - 2006 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molstruc.2005.08.027 SN - 0022-2860 SN - 1872-8014 SN - 0377-046X VL - 784 IS - 1-3 SP - 157 EP - 161 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-12241 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Sauer, Andreas A1 - Bremser, Wolfram T1 - Fifteen years of proficiency testing of total petrol hydrocarbon determination in soil: a story of success JF - Accreditation and Quality Assurance N2 - The total petrol hydrocarbon (TPH) content in soil is determined by gas chromatographic separation and flame ionisation detection according to ISO 16703 in routine laboratories for about 20 years. The development of the interlaboratory variability observed with this analytical procedure over 15 years in a proficiency testing scheme conducted annually with more than 170 participants is evaluated in detail. A significant improvement of the reproducibility standard deviation among participants is observed over the years and attributed to an increasing familiarity with the procedure. Nevertheless, the determination of TPH in the environmentally relevant mass fraction range between 500 mg/kg and 10 000 mg/kg in soils or sediments is far from reaching the reproducibility standard deviations predicted by the Horwitz curve. It is seen that laboratories with sporadic participation tend to report higher bias, while a core group of laboratories participating on a regular basis arrived at reproducibility standard deviations below 20 %. Results from a given laboratory obtained on two different samples tend to be highly correlated in the same PT round indicating a sound repeatability. Expectedly, the within-laboratory correlation between results from consecutive rounds was considerably lower. However, results from consecutive rounds with a temporal distance of 1, 2 or 3 years revealed largely similar correlations which suggests that the within-laboratory reproducibility adjusts to a constant level at least after a period of 1 year. KW - Mineralölkohlenwasserstoffe KW - Boden KW - Ringversuch KW - Gaschromatographie KW - GC-FID KW - Eingnugsprüfung KW - Proficiency Testing PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00769-019-01383-x SN - 0949-1775 SN - 1432-0517 VL - 24 IS - 4 SP - 289 EP - 296 PB - Springer AN - OPUS4-48419 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Becker, Roland A1 - Scharf, Holger A1 - Reich, Peter T1 - BAM-Ringversuche "Altlasten" - eine Bilanz JF - Altlasten-Spektrum PY - 2001 SN - 0942-3818 SN - 1864-8371 IS - 4 SP - 191 EP - 197 PB - Schmidt CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-1143 LA - deu AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -