Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-v9fdk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-08T00:29:07.442Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

How to use and how not to use certified reference materials in industrial chemical metrology laboratories

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2020

John R. Sieber Open the ORCID record for John R. Sieber [Opens in a new window]
John R. Sieber*
Affiliation:
Chemical Sciences Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland20878, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Electronic mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

As a producer of certified reference materials (CRMs), NIST faces high demand for Standard Reference Materials (SRMs). The demand is exacerbated by widespread misuse of CRMs. When should one use CRMs? When should one not use CRMs? Must labs always use NIST SRMs? How can labs demonstrate analytical capabilities for their accreditation scopes? Why so many questions? Standards developers, laboratory accreditors, and laboratory staff must be able to understand these topics with respect to quality systems in compliance with ISO/IEC 17025. They must calibrate and validate test methods and document traceability to the International System of Units (SI). Many people working in laboratory accreditation and under the umbrella of a quality system do not fully understand what these things are, let alone the language of chemical metrology. On average, they have little training in analytical chemistry, elemental analysis, and reference material development. It is hoped this paper will impress upon the reader the need for understanding how CRMs can be best used in the laboratory. This paper provides a brief background on the above problems and then looks at some of the support and reference information provided by NIST to metals and mining industries labs, commercial CRM producers, and accrediting bodies. The concepts and guidance apply broadly to chemical metrology and fundamental analytical chemistry. The paper includes examples (some from X-ray fluorescence spectrometry) to illustrate concepts.

Keywords

materials scienceXRFcertified reference materials
Type
Proceedings Paper
Information
Powder Diffraction , Volume 35 , Issue 2 , June 2020 , pp. 104 - 111
Check for updates
Creative Commons
This is a work of the US Government and is not subject to copyright protection within the United States.
Copyright
Copyright © National Institute of Standards and Technology, on behalf of Secretary of Commerce, 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the International Centre for Diffraction Data.

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

ASTM Workshop on the Impact of Accreditation on Reference Materials and Method Development in Analytical Laboratories Supporting the Metals and Ores Industries, Gaithersburg, MD, USA, 19 May 2014. Available at: https://www.nist.gov/news-events/events/2014/05/astm-workshop-impact-accreditation-reference-materials-and-method (accessed September 2019)Google Scholar
ASTM E2857-11 (Reapproved 2016). “Standard guide for validating analytical methods,” in Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol. 03.05 (ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA). doi: 10.1520/E2857-11R16.Google Scholar
ASTM E2972-15 (2015). “Standard guide for production, testing, and value assignment of in-house reference materials for metals, ores, and other related materials,” in Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol. 03.05 (ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA). doi:10.1520/E2972-15.Google Scholar
Duewer, D. L., Lippa, K. A., Rukhin, A. L., and Sharpless, K. E. (2014). “The ABCs of Using Standard Reference Materials in the Analysis of Foods and Dietary Supplements: A Practical Guide,” NIST Spec. Pub. 260-181. Available at: https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.260-181.pdf (accessed August 2019).Google Scholar
ISO Guide 31 (2015). Reference Materials – Contents of Certificates and Labels (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva).Google Scholar
ISO Guide 33 (2015). Uses of Reference Materials – Good Practice in Using Reference Materials (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva).Google Scholar
ISO/IEC 17025 (2017). General Requirements for the Competence of Calibration and Testing Laboratories (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva).Google Scholar
ISO/IEC 17034 (2016). General Requirements for the Competence of Reference Material Producers (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva).Google Scholar
JCGM 100 (2008). Evaluation of Measurement Data — Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement (GUM 1995 with Minor Corrections) (International Bureau of Weights and Measures, Paris). Available at: https://www.bipm.org/utils/common/documents/jcgm/JCGM_100_2008_E.pdf (accessed September 2019).Google Scholar
JCGM 101 (2008). Evaluation of Measurement Data – Supplement 1 to the “Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement” - Propagation of Distributions Using a Monte Carlo Method (International Bureau of Weights and Measures, Paris). Available at: https://www.bipm.org/utils/common/documents/jcgm/JCGM_101_2008_E.pdf (accessed September 2019).Google Scholar
JCGM 200 (2012). International Vocabulary of Metrology – Basic and General Concepts and Associated Terms (VIM), 3rd ed. 2008 version with minor corrections (International Bureau of Weights and Measures, Paris). Available at: https://www.bipm.org/utils/common/documents/jcgm/JCGM_200_2012.pdf (accessed September 2019).Google Scholar
May, W., Parris, R., Beck, C., Fassett, J., Greenberg, R., Guenther, F., Kramer, G., Wise, S., Gills, T., Colbert, J., Gettings, R., and MacDonald, B. (2000). “Definitions of Terms and Modes Used at NIST for Value-Assignment of Reference Materials for Chemical Measurements,” NIST Spec. Pub. 260-136.Google Scholar
NIST (2017). Certificate of Analysis “SRM 8k - Bessemer Steel (Simulated) 0.1% Carbon (Chip Form),” 19 July 2017. Available at: https://www-s.nist.gov/srmors/view_detail.cfm?srm=8K (accessed September 2019).Google Scholar
Staats, G. (1988). “Computer aided conversion of repeatability into trueness as applied to inorganic analytical chemistry,” Fresenius J. Anal. Chem. 330, 469.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Staats, G. (1990). “On the role of pure oxide materials for primary calibration and validation in inorganic bulk analysis,” Fresenius J. Anal. Chem. 336, 132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Staats, G. and Strieder, S. (1993). “Validation of sulphide-bearing certified reference samples by primary calibration as applied to X-ray fluorescence,” X-Ray Spectrom. 22(3), 132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taylor, B. N. and Kuyatt, C. E. “Guidelines for Evaluating and Expressing the Uncertainty of NIST Measurement Results,” NIST Technical Note 1297. Available at: https://physics.nist.gov/cuu/Uncertainty/index.html (accessed August 2019).CrossRefGoogle Scholar