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Dynamic workplans and field analytics: Metals assessment by inductively coupled plasma/optical emission spectroscopy
Author(s) -
Simpson Robert L.,
Bock Christa L.,
Robbat Albert
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
remediation journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.762
H-Index - 27
eISSN - 1520-6831
pISSN - 1051-5658
DOI - 10.1002/rem.3440090406
Subject(s) - environmental science , inductively coupled plasma , inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy , contamination , hazardous waste , groundwater , environmental engineering , waste management , engineering , ecology , physics , plasma , geotechnical engineering , quantum mechanics , biology
Hazardous waste site investigations were carried out at the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) in Yuma, Arizona and at Hanscom Air Force Base (HAFB) in Bedford, Massachusetts. The purpose of the first was to determine the location and extent of metals contamination throughout the base. The objective of the second was to evaluate the risk of metals contamination to groundwater from soil at three locations within the airfield. Dynamic workplans were developed and an adaptive sampling and analysis plan carried out with the data produced in the field used to support the goals of each project. An inductively coupled plasma/optical emission spectrometer (ICP/OES) was modified for field operation. A more efficient microwave digestion method and pressurized Teflon filtration system were developed for the HAFB project. Results were comparable to standard Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) methods, which must rely on two digestion procedures to recover EPA‐targeted metals within the prescribed recovery range. The MCAS investigation, conducted over a five‐month period, advanced the Navy's efforts from 30 months behind schedule to 18 months ahead of schedule, while the data generated at HAFB showed no risk to groundwater from metals.