INTERLABORATORY PROGRAM FOR THE QUALITY-CONTROL OF TRIMETHYLLEAD DETERMINATION IN THE ENVIRONMENT

Determinations of the trimethyllead moiety in environmental samples ar e carried out by a number of laboratories in Europe. To verify the qua lity of such determinations, the Measurements and Testing Programme (f ormerly SCR) of the European Commission organised an interlaboratory e xercise which allowed discussion and comparison of the different techn iques used so far in lead speciation analyses. In addition, this first step enabled a study of the feasibility of the preparation of candida te reference materials (CRMs) for the determination of the trimethylle ad moiety in simulated rainwater to be carried out. The solutions used in this study were carefully prepared and their homogeneity and stabi lity verified. This paper describes the organisation and the results o f the intercomparison and discusses the further development of the pro ject.