Sampling and shipping

Cereals are dried in a greenhouse after sampling and shipped within 4 weeks of harvest. 

Because different analyses need a different weight of soil as shown in Appendix 12, one sample container may be sufficient for all of the required analysis. The SAP should specify how many sample containers should be collected as illustrated in Example 3.3. Collecting excessive soil volumes increases the cost of sampling and shipping. 

Bromine ttifluoride is commercially available at a minimum purity of 98% (108). Free Br2 is maintained at less than 2%. Other minor impurities are HF and BrF. Free Br2 content estimates are based on color, with material containing less than 0.5% Br2 having a straw color, and ca 2% Br2 an amber-red color. Fluoride content can be obtained by controlled hydrolysis of a sample and standard analysis for fluorine content. Bromine ttifluoride is too high boiling and reactive for gas chromatographic analysis. It is shipped as a Hquid in steel cylinders in quantities of 91 kg or less. The cylinders are fitted with either a valve or plug to faciUtate insertion of a dip tube. Bromine ttifluoride is classified as an oxidizer and poison by DOT. 

Size stability refers to the abihty of coal to withstand breakage during handhng and shipping. It is determined by twice dropping a 23-kg (50-lb) sample of coal from a height of 1.8 m (6 ft) onto a steel plate. From the size distribution before and after the test, the size stabdity is reported as a percentage factor (see ASTM D 440). The friability test... 

At the end of the irradiation, the samples are withdrawn from the reactor and y-ray spectroscopy is carried out. Most often the laboratory performing the y-ray spectroscopy is located in a different city, in which case the samples are shipped and the reactor serves as a neutron source only. Many reactors also have y-ray spectroscopy capability so that measurements can be made at the reactor site as well. 

Technetium-99m (the m signifies a metastable, or moderately stable, species) is generated in nuclear reactors and shipped to hospitals for use in medical imaging. The radioisotope has a half-life of 6.01 h. If a 165-mg sample of technetium-99m is shipped from a nuclear reactor to a hospital 125 kilometers away in a truck that averages 50.0 kmh. what mass of technetium-99m will remain when it arrives at the hospital ... 

However, a sample taken in the doctor s office can be properly packed and shipped to a special laboratory, if necessary. Because endosulfan leaves the body fairly quickly, these methods are useful only for finding exposures that have occurred within the last few days. At this time, these methods can only be used to prove that a person has been exposed to endosulfan. The test results cannot be used to predict if you wiU have any adverse health effects. Exposure to other chemicals at the same time at hazardous waste sites could cause some confusion in understanding these results. More information about tests to find endosulfan in the body is presented in Chapters 2 and 6. 

A shipping card is placed in each cardboard box with the samples, and the original copy of the shipping card is kept at the trial site. 

RAC samples from a processing study should be handled exactly as RAC samples from a field residue trial. They should be frozen as soon as possible following collection. Once the processing commodities have been created, they should be frozen and shipped to the analytical lab as quickly as possible. Both the RAC samples and processed samples from a processing study must remain frozen throughout the shipment and storage period of the study in order to preserve residue integrity. 

Where samples are large, e.g., cabbage, melons, etc., the unit (cabbage) may be cut into quarters. Select the opposite quarters of the unit sample, which are then used to make the final composite sample, thus reducing the sample volume by half for easier handling, freezing, and shipping of the samples. 

The two deliverables from the field residue trial will be the samples, properly labeled, packed and shipped, and the field notebook, filled out correctly and completely. It is important that the Principal Investigator realize that all notations and calculations are made directly in the field notebook, not transcribed, and in ink. Multiple events, such as calibrations, applications, and harvests, must be documented on sequential individual forms. The field data in the notebook are not sent to the EPA as part of a submission package. These data must conform... 

Each shopper must be provided with clear, concise oral and written directions, e.g., where to shop, what and how much to collect, how to package and label the samples, and where and how to ship the samples. Information must be provided on the exact products to be purchased, including any limitations. Some of the limitations in a... 

Communication among all individuals involved in an LSMBS is crucial. Lines of communication must be clearly defined and must be in place well before the study is initiated. Therefore, lines of communication between the persons who collect and ship commodities, the field phase managemenf sfudy personnel, fhe analytical laboratories, and overall study management must all be clearly established prior to study initiation. This delineation of the lines of communication must include oral and written communication, including the transmittal of raw data such as sample collection logs and chain of custody forms. 

Samples should be chilled or frozen to maintain stability of the analytes during shipment. Usually samples are packed and shipped on wet ice or dry-ice or stored and shipped in a freezer truck. Use a waterproof plastic insulated shipping container (e.g., cooler) and double bag the ice when samples are shipped on wet ice. A large... 

The quantity of QC samples to be collected is dependent on the study design, but Aeld blanks and held replicates should represent approximately 5-10% of the groundwater samples collected for the study. QC samples should be collected on the same day, using the same supplies and equipment, and be stored and shipped under the same conditions as the groundwater samples collected for pesticide analysis. Document all procedures, equipment, and reference chemicals used to generate the QC samples. 

The required volume for the analysis of water samples from a drainage flow, stream, or river is collected from a depth of up to 50 cm at the center of a flow using an appropriate sampling bottle. A sample size of 1000 mL should be sufficient for the usual type of determination. The sampling bottle and bottles for storage and shipment should be well washed with an appropriate organic solvent and distilled water so that the sample is not contaminated, and keeping those bottles in a clean container is recommended. It is recommended that samples taken are kept below 5 °C and shipped to the laboratory as soon as possible. 

Each vegefafion, soil or tissue sample was uniquely numbered and stored individually in a plastic Ziploc bag. Samples were frozen until shipped to laboratory facilities. Samples were shipped in coolers with dry-ice and were returned to freezers immediately upon receipt at the analytical laboratories. Control samples were stored separately from treated samples. 

The test substance may be acquired in a number of ways. One common method is to purchase the product from a chemical dealer. This method of acquiring the test substance for a worker exposure or re-entry study allows one to proceed rapidly with the execution of the field portion of the study without the serious delays encountered while waiting for a test substance to be manufactured, assayed, and shipped to the site. Although having a test substance formulation which has been assayed under GLP standards and for which a certificate of analysis has been shipped to the test site is desirable, there are several instances when this is not practical. For example, one may encounter a worker exposure study where the pesticide to be evaluated is sold only in mini-bulk or even large bulk quantities holding as much as 2000 gal. In this case, duplicate 5-10-g or 5-10-mL retainer samples should be taken from the bulk or mini-bulk tanks for assay after the worker exposure study is in progress. 

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