ISSN:
1745-6592
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Energy, Environment Protection, Nuclear Power Engineering
,
Geosciences
Notes:
Discrete-depth ground water samplers are used during environmental screening investigations to collect ground water samples in lieu of installing and sampling monitoring wells. Two of the most commonly used samplers are the BAT Enviroprobe and the QED HydroPunch I, which rely on differing sample collection mechanics. Although these devices have been on the market for several years, it was unknown what, if any, effect the differences would have on analytical results for ground water samples containing low to moderate concentrations of chlorinated volatile organic compounds (VOCs). This study investigated whether the discrete-depth ground water sampler used introduces statistically significant differences in analytical results. Our goal was to provide a technical basis for allowing the two devices to be used interchangeably during screening investigations.Because this study was based on field samples, it included several sources of potential variability. It was necessary to separate differences due to sampler type from variability due to sampling location, sample handling, and laboratory analytical error. To statistically evaluate these sources of variability, the experiment was arranged in a nested design. Sixteen ground water samples were collected from eight random locations within a 15-foot by 15-foot grid. The grid was located in an area where shallow ground water was believed to be uniformly affected by VOCs. The data were evaluated using analysis of variance.This study indicates that when sampling for short-chain. chlorinated aliphatic compounds such as trichloroethylene, spatial variability from sampling location (over even a relatively small area) exceeds the differences between the Enviroprobe and HydroPuneh I. Therefore, the two sampling devices can be used interchangeably without reducing the internal consistency of the resulting data. However, when sampling for chlorinated aromatics, the choice of sampling device max introduce significant differences in the analytical results.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6592.1995.tb00511.x
