ELPAT Program Report: Background and Current Status (July 1997)

Details

• Personal Author:
  Esche, Curtis A. ; Groff, Jensen H.
• Description:
  The results of round 19 of the Environmental Lead (7439921) Proficiency Analytical Testing (ELPAT) program were discussed. ELPAT was a program administered by the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) in conjunction with NIOSH and the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to evaluate and improve the performance of laboratories performing analyses associated with lead abatement. The program was part of the National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Project, an EPA sponsored program for accrediting private and state laboratories. Any laboratory that was interested could participate in the ELPAT program. Proficiency test samples for the participating laboratories were prepared by the Research Triangle Institute, an AIHA contractor, using paint chips, dust wipes, and soils. Four samples of each matrix were prepared. The samples were sent out each calendar quarter (round). Laboratories were rated based upon their performance in the ELPAT program over the past year (four rounds) for each lead matrix: paint chips, soil, and dust wipes. A laboratory was rated as proficient if all four sample results for each matrix were considered acceptable for the last two consecutive rounds or at least 75% of the results reported in the last four consecutive rounds were considered acceptable. A total of 379 laboratories were enrolled for round 19, and 362 laboratories (96%) submitted results. Flameless atomic absorption spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry were the major analytical methods used. Of the 355 laboratories that reported results for the four paint chip samples, 328 to 343 were considered acceptable, 281 to 292 of the 308 that reported results for the four soil samples were judged acceptable, and 308 to 319 of the 327 that reported results for the dust wipes were judged acceptable. The relative standard deviations for the paint chip, soil, and dust wipe samples ranged from 6.1 to 9.5, 5.1 to 12.0, and 6.5 to 10.5%, respectively. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Chemistry Dust Laboratories Metals, Heavy Occupational Health Quality Control Safety
• Keywords:
  Chemical-analysis Dust-analysis Heavy-metals Industrial-hygiene Laboratory-work NIOSH-Author Performance-capability Quality-standards Statistical-analysis
• ISSN:
  0002-8894
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DPSE - Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  58
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00239659
• Citation:
  Am Ind Hyg Assoc J 1997 Nov; 58(11):768-771
• CAS Registry Number:
  Lead (CAS RN 7439-92-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1998
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c367a87f834d2c3e5197c2f3cdefd9b4897b3a3a0ec461b8527f45ee0da097d12130c192037733f911714c18e073e2b7a765e2b16afd109594b307be26e85540
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/198000/cdc_198000_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.20 MB ]