Alcontrol Laboratories uses new Ion Chromatography (IC) instrumentation for the analysis of bromate and oxyhalides in potable water from Metrohm
Alcontrol Laboratories is one of Europe's leading analysis companies with over 25 years of testing experience, and when their site at Rotherham required new ion chromatography (IC) instrumentation for the analysis of bromate and oxyhalides in potable water, they went to Metrohm.
Standards for the quality of drinking water in the UK are some of the toughest in the world with primary responsibility for assessing compliance of the individual water companies falling onto the Drinking Water Inspectorate.
In order for Metrohm IC to be accepted and validated on site at Alcontrol, the instruments were subjected to lengthy performance testing to meet the stringent protocol defined in "NS 30" (Manual on Analytical Control for the Water Industry).
The 861 Advanced Compact IC was used for the determination of oxyhalides with the 844 UV/VIS Compact IC quantifying the bromate with Post Column Reagent based upon EPA Method 326.0.
Both instruments were linked to the 838 Advanced Sample Processor using ultrafiltration, a unique inline sample preparation technique that saves the analyst time - automatically filtering the samples during the analytical run - and helps protects the separation column without the need for expensive headspace filters.
Running costs are very important to Alcontrol - due to the sheer volume of samples analysed - and an instrument backed by a COOL Guarantee giving transparent costs at the outset with no costly replacement of suppressor membranes or eluent generation modules was highly desirable.
The use of a custom sample rack allows Alcontrol to use generic sample vials and save further money.
The detection limit for bromate was around 0.2 micrograms/litre a factor of 50 less than the current consent limit of 10 micrograms/litre bromate.
Important too in an ever changing environmentally aware marketplace is that the Metrohm IC instruments do not generate any hazardous waste material.
The configuration of the 861 and 844 in tandem is flexible, the chemistries can be run separately or simultaneously simply through the click of a mouse.
To prepare the eluents manually or with valid IC and eluent synthesisation, again the choice is open.
