An investigation into the sources and propagation of errors in analytical Chemistry

Funding or Partner Organisation: Australian Research Council (ARC Large Grant)

Start year: 1997

Summary: A recent study, involving laboratories throughout Europe, has revealed significant errors in analytical chemistry. This proposal describes an investigation into the possible sources and propagation of these errors. Our initial studies show that contemporary methods of error estimation are inadequate , allowing errors of up to 100% of the concentration to undetected. We propose to develop and evaluate improved techniques of error estimation and to perform a large practical study into the chemical and physical phenomena that could lead to errors in HPLC. We highlight the significance of this work to international trade, the legal community and the general quality of analytical chemistry in Australia.

FOR Codes: Analytical Chemistry n.e.c.