Using for quality assurance

This feasibility study shows that determination of pellet wt by fast neutron oxygen activation analysis can be used for quality assurance inspection of M34 primers. Either direct oxygen analysis, where a comparison standard (such as lucite) is used, or a ratio method, utilizing the Cu in the cup-anvil combination as an internal standard, can be applied. In general, the uniformity of production primers is quite satisfactory, as is usually the case where production procedures are standardized. It seems likely that the light pellet is one which has been improperly manufd and will probably be well below specifications in pellet wt. Production experience with such primers indicates that only one in 3x10s primers is expected to show low pellet wt therefore, one would not expect to find a reject in a small sampling. Nevertheless, detection and rejection of this one bad unit is critical for the prevention of weapon malfunctions and possible injuries to personnel... 

Internal or built-in controls are present when the specimen contains the target marker, not only in the tumor to be identified, but also in adjacent normal tissue. The evaluation of internal controls (when present) can be used as an indication of appropriate immunoreactivity. For ubiquitous antigens, internal controls are acceptable for use as a positive control, but the laboratory manual must clearly state, on a case-by-case basis, the manner in which internal positive controls are used for quality assurance. 

Gladney ES, Perrin DR, Robinson RD, et al. 1984. Multitechnique determination of elemental concentrations in NBS urban air particulate SRM 1648 and evaluation of its use for quality assurance. Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 83 379-386. 

Elemental Analysis. The acetone fractions were analyzed for C, H,- and N by an automatic analyzer. Sulfur and the halogens (i.e., Cl and Br) were analyzed by combustion and subsequent titration. The following standard compounds were used for quality assurance (QA) purposes acetanilide (C, H, N), sulfanilamide (S), p-chlorobenzoic acid (Cl), and p-bromobenzoic acid (Br). 

FAST (friction assessment and screening test) machine Small friction material specimens dragging for 90 min on the circumference of a test ring at constant torque Used for quality assurance only... 

Many of the chemical analyses used for quality assurance have already been discussed however, there are other important tests worth brief consideration. 

Using quantitative methods, specific properties of smart composites are characterized. These include, in the case of sensors, the electric charge resulting from defined deformation of the integrated piezoelectric transducer or in the case of actuators, the resulting deformation of the composite structure caused by defined voltages applied to the transducer. In addition to the characterization of specific properties, quantitative methods can be used for quality assurance and for functional testing of smart composites. 

In laboratory work often labeling and transcription of data are done by hand, sometimes with unreadable handwriting. A LIMS can produce labels, worklists and other printable papers which are legible for everyone. Furthermore entered data can be checked, so their quality is much better. For laboratories whose results are used for quality assurance this aspect is very important. 

It is easy to measure the strength of refractory materials at room temperature, and while this data is useful for quality assurance testing, it is of little importance... 

Modulus of rupture at ambient temperature was introduced earlier and, as indicated, is useful for quality assurance but gives litde indication of in-service performance, unlike the same test carried out at elevated temperature. The nominal specimen size used in national and international standards for dense and insulating refractories is again 150 mm x 25 mm x 25 mm or similar, and support test span is approximately 125 mm. Specimen temperature is measured by a thermocouple placed centrally underneath the test bar. The specimens are heated to the test temperature at specified rates. Following a dwell for a set period at the test temperature, the samples are loaded to failure at a designated stress rate. The stress rate differs for dense and insulating refractories. 

Control charts were originally developed in the 1920s as a quality assurance tool for the control of manufactured products.Two types of control charts are commonly used in quality assurance a property control chart in which results for single measurements, or the means for several replicate measurements, are plotted sequentially and a precision control chart in which ranges or standard deviations are plotted sequentially. In either case, the control chart consists of a line representing the mean value for the measured property or the precision, and two or more boundary lines whose positions are determined by the precision of the measurement process. The position of the data points about the boundary lines determines whether the system is in statistical control. 

Using Control Charts for Quality Assurance Control charts play an important role in a performance-based program of quality assurance because they provide an easily interpreted picture of the statistical state of an analytical system. Quality assessment samples such as blanks, standards, and spike recoveries can be monitored with property control charts. A precision control chart can be used to monitor duplicate samples. 

ISO 9000 - Quality Management and Quality Assurance Standard. Guidelines for selection of Standards in the series and use of the same for the managemetit of quality systems. ISO 9001 - Model for Quality Assurance in Design or Development. Production. Installation and Servicing. 

The other method for quality assurance inspection of pellet wt in the primer eliminates the need for a comparator oxygen-containing standard. Here, the Cu in the cup-anvil combination in the primer is used as an internal standard by comparing the 0.511 MeV positron annihilation radiation from 62Cu produced by the 63Cu(n,2n)62Cu reaction to the 6.1 MeV 7 from l6N produced by oxygen activation. In this case the actual determination of pellet wt is not required the ratio of Cu to O, which should be fixed for a pro-... 

Rossbach M, Ostapczuk P, Emons H (1998) Microhomogeneity of candidate reference materials Comparison of solid sampling Zeeman-AAS with INAA. Fresenius J Anal Chem 360 380-383. Rossbach M, Stoeppler M (1987) Use of CRMs as mutual calibration materials and control of synthetic multielement standards as used in INAA. J Radioanal Nud Chem Artides 113 217-223. Sargent M (1995) Development and application of a protocol for quality assurance of trace analysis. Anal Proc 32 71-76. 

Applications Spark-source atomic emission and mass spectrometry have been used for routine analysis of solids, particularly for quality assurance and comparative work. As with GD-MS, spark sources are restricted to samples that are, to some extent, electrically conducting, or that can be made conducting by... 

The main concern for quality assurance for dietary supplements is that the correct ingredient is used. Incorrect ingredients may be used via adulteration, erroneous substitution of products, or lack of routine tests to monitor the presence of the intended amounts of an active ingredient before and after processing [16]. 

Another external response to concerns about MCOs has been an increased interest in measuring the quality of care they deliver [35]. This interest has resulted in the development of numerous quality indicators. One example, HEDIS (Health Plan Employer Data and Information Set), is a standardized set of performance indicators used to compare health plans. Developed by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, HEDIS measures allow employers and employees to evaluate different plans. Only a small number of HEDIS indicators are related to medication use, but more drug-related indicators are likely to be added in the future. The use of quality indicators likely will increase as the measures become more refined and tested. 

To ensure the safety of food products, representative samples must be inspected so that foodborne bacteria can be identified.15,18,19 Bacteria producing heat-stable enterotoxins, such as Staphylococcus aureus, may be identified by biochemical and serological techniques.20,21 Molecular methods are now widely used for the identification of many pathogenic foodborne bacteria,15,22,23 In addition bacteria used as starter cultures for cheese, yogurt, other fermented foods and beverages, and probiotic dietary supplements may be identified for quality assurance.22,24,25... 

These statistical methods give a comprehensive description of the whole separation and therefore can also be used as tools to investigate separation properties for quality assurance procedures. 

The validation process begun in Phase I is extended during Phase II. In this phase, selectivity is investigated using various batches of drugs, available impurities, excipients, and samples from stability studies. Accuracy should be determined using at least three levels of concentration, and the intermediate precision and the quantitation limit should be tested. For quality assurance evaluation of the analysis results, control charts can be used, such as the Shewart-charts, the R-charts, or the Cusum-charts. In this phase, the analytical method is refined for routine use. 

A variety of measurement methods have been developed for determining the water activity of food materials and are well described in texts such as Rahman (1995), Wiederhold (1997), and Bell and Labuza (2000). In general, water activity is a relatively easy parameter to measure, which can be an advantage, especially for use in the food industry. Depending on the technique selected, the water activity of a food material can be measured in a time frame of minutes (e.g., electronic instrument). In addition, individuals can be trained, with a limited amount of instruction, to make water activity measurements. Consequently, when appropriate, water activity measurements can be made relatively quickly by personnel overseeing a manufacturing line for quality assurance purposes. Measurement protocols, such as calibration procedures and proper temperature control, should be implemented to assure the accuracy of online c/w measurements. 

In the analysis of solid samples (e.g., LA-ICP-MS, SEM), synthetic standards cannot easily be prepared to the required concentrations, and accurate calibration of such techniques is often challenging. In some cases (e.g., SEM) pure element or single mineral standards are used, ideally with an appropriate standard for each element to be quantified. (It is possible in SEM, within limits, to use fewer standards than the number of elements to be determined, with the calibration for other elements being predicted from the response of the nearest element.) More often, however, multielement primary standards are used as the means of calibrating the instrument, e.g., for LA-ICP-MS of glasses, volcanics, and ceramics, two glass standards, NIST 610 and 612 (Pearce et al. 1996), are often used. It is always advisable to use more than one multielement standard in order to cover as wide a range of concentrations as possible, and to use at least one additional independent reference material as an unknown, for quality assurance purposes (see below). 

Simethicone is an antigas ingredient in many liquid and solid pharmaceutical preparations, and FTIR is used in quality assurance laboratories to determine whether its concentration is at the specified level. A sample of the product is dispersed in an HC1 solution and the simethicone extracted from this solution with toluene. The toluene solutions are then run on the FTIR using a liquid sampling cell. For the quantitative analysis, a simethicone absorption band that is free from interference from the toluene absorption bands is used in a manner similar to that of the isopropyl alcohol band in Experiment 26. 

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