Results of external quality-assurance program for the National Atmospheric Deposition Program and National Trends Network during 1985

Abstract

External quality-assurance monitoring of the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP) and National Trends Network (NTN) was performed by the U.S. Geological Survey during 1985. The monitoring consisted of three primary programs: (1) An intersite comparison program designed to assess the precision and accuracy of onsite pH and specific-conductance measurements made by NADP and NTN site operators; (2) a blind-audit sample program designed to assess the effect of routine field handling on the precision and bias of NADP and NTN wet-deposition data; and (3) an interlaboratory comparison program designed to compare analytical data from the laboratory processing NADP and NTN samples with data produced by other laboratories routinely analyzing wet-deposition samples and to provide estimates of individual laboratory precision. An average of 94 percent of the site operators participated in the four voluntary intersite comparisons during 1985. A larger percentage of participating site operators met the accuracy goal for specific-conductance measurements (average, 87 percent) than for pH measurements (average, 67 percent). Overall precision was dependent on the actual specific conductance of the test solution and independent of the pH of the test solution. Data for the blindaudit sample program indicated slight positive biases resulting from routine field handling for all analytes except specific conductance. These biases were not large enough to be significant for most data users. Data for the blind-audit sample program also indicated that decreases in hydrogen-ion concentration were accompanied by decreases in specific conductance. Precision estimates derived from the blind-audit sample program indicate that the major source of uncertainty in wet-deposition data is the routine field handling that each wet-deposition sample receives. Results of the interlaboratory comparison program were similar to results of previous years' evaluations indicating that the participating laboratories produced comparable data when they analyzed identical wet-deposition samples and that the laboratory processing NADP and NTN samples achieved the best analyte precision of the participating laboratories.