ISO 17733:2015
Workplace air - Determination of mercury and inorganic mercury compounds - Method by cold-vapour atomic absorption spectrometry or atomic fluorescence spectrometry

Standard No.

ISO 17733:2015

Release Date

2015

Published By

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)

Latest

ISO 17733:2015

Scope

This International Standard specifies a procedure for determination of the time-weighted average mass concentration of mercury vapour and inorganic mercury compounds in workplace air. Mercury vapour is collected on a solid sorbent using either a diffusive badge or a pumped sorbent tube. Particulate inorganic mercury compounds, if present, are collected on a quartz fibre filter. Samples are analysed using either cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometry (CVAAS) or cold vapour atomic fluorescence spectrometry (CVAFS) after acid dissolution of the mercury collected. This International Standard is applicable to the assessment of personal exposure to mercury vapour and/or particulate inorganic mercury compounds in air for comparison with long-term or short-term exposure limits for mercury and inorganic mercury compounds and for static (area) sampling. The lower limit of the working range of the procedure is the quantification limit. This is determined by the sampling and analysis methods selected by the user, but it is typically in the range 0,01 µg to 0,04 µg of mercury (see 13.1). The upper limit of the working range of the procedure is determined by the capacity of the diffusive badge, sorbent tube or filter used for sample collection, but it is at least 30 µg of mercury (see 13.2). The concentration range of mercury in air for which this International Standard is applicable is determined in part by the sampling method selected by the user, but it is also dependent on the air sample volume. The diffusive badge method is not applicable to measurements of mercury vapour when chlorine is present in the atmosphere, e.g. in chloralkali works, but chlorine does not interfere with the pumped sorbent tube method (see 13.12.1). Gaseous organomercury compounds could cause a positive interference in the measurement of mercury vapour (see 13.12.2). Similarly, particulate organomercury compounds and gaseous organomercury compounds adsorbed onto airborne particles could cause a positive interference in the measurement of particulate inorganic mercury compounds (see 13.12.3).

ISO 17733:2015 Referenced Document

• ASTM E1370-96 Standard Guide for Air Sampling Strategies for Worker and Workplace Protection
• EN 1076:1997 Workplace Atmospheres - Pumped Sorbent Tubes for the Determination of Gases and Vapours - Requirements and Test Methods
• EN 1232:1997 Workplace Atmospheres - Pumps for Personal Sampling of Chemical Agents - Requirements and Test Methods
• EN 13205:2001 Workplace Atmospheres - Assessment of Performance of Instruments for Measurement of Airborne Particle Concentrations*， 2024-04-20 Update
• EN 13890:2002 Workplace atmospheres Procedures for measuring metals and metalloids in airborne particles Requirements and test methods*， 2024-04-20 Update
• EN 1540:1998 Workplace Atmospheres - Terminology
• EN 482:1994 Workplace Atmospheres - General Requirements for the Performance of Procedures for the Measurement of Chemical Agents
• EN 689:1995 Workplace atmospheres - Guidance for the assessment of exposure by inhalation to chemical agents for comparison with limit values and measurement strategy
• EN 838:1995 Workplace Atmospheres - Diffusive Samplers for the Determination of Gases and Vapours - Requirements and Test Methods
• ISO 1042:1998 Laboratory glassware - One-mark volumetric flasks
• ISO 3534-1:2006 Statistics - Vocabulary and symbols - Part 1: General statistical terms and terms used in probability
• ISO 3585:1998 Borosilicate glass 3.3 - Properties
• ISO 648:2008 Laboratory glassware - Single-volume pipettes
• ISO/IEC GUIDE 98-3:2008 Uncertainty of measurement — Part 3: Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (GUM:1995)
• ISO/IEC GUIDE 99:2007 International vocabulary of metrology - Basic and general concepts and associated terms (VIM)

ISO 17733:2015 history

• 2015 ISO 17733:2015 Workplace air - Determination of mercury and inorganic mercury compounds - Method by cold-vapour atomic absorption spectrometry or atomic fluorescence spectrometry
• 2004 ISO 17733:2004 Workplace air - Determination of mercury and inorganic mercury compounds - Method by cold-vapour atomic absorption spectrometry or atomic fluorescence spectrometry