The potential application of refuse-derived fuel, in particular RDF-3, as an alternative or supplemental fuel is dependent upon its acceptance as an article of commerce. ASTM Committee E-38 on Resource Recovery, and its Subcommittee on Energy, E-38.01, have been actively engaged in the development of concensus standards for this purpose especially since April 1974; standard procedures for the characterization of RDF-3 are being developed. These procedures are based on those ASTM methods used in coal analysis. The procedures developed will insure a meaningful purchase—sales relationship between the buyer and seller. A variety of chemical and physical test procedures were studied by as many as 12 laboratories. A total of 28 editorial draft standards have been prepared. Of this number, 13 have appeared as accepted methods in the Annual Books of ASTM Standards while the remainder are either under evaluation or under some phase of ASTM balloting. The National Bureau of Standards, in cooperation with ASTM subcommittee E38.01, has undertaken a technical review of a selected group of chemical properties of RDF-3. The property of principal interest is the calorific content and is expressed as the higher heating value. In order to properly characterize this property, critical evaluation of methods to determine total moisture, residual moisture, and ash is also necessary. Intra-laboratory (within-laboratory) and inter-laboratory (between-laboratory) variations in determinations for moisture, ash, and higher heating value are discussed. A comparison of these results with those for round robin data for coal is also made. The result is identification of the levels of precision for intea-laboratory and inter-laboratory agreement.