Validation assessment about the determination of selected elements in groundwater by high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (HR-ICPMS)

A validation assessment of the determination of five elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu and Fe) in groundwater by high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (HR-ICPMS) is presented. The groundwater samples, which are used for the measurements of this validation assessment, have the following concentration ranges (As: 0.2-7.8 μg L^-1; Cd: 0.05-0.6 μg L^-1; Cr: 0.2-1 μg L^-1; Cu: 1.1-7.5 μg L^-1; Fe: 0.08-2.6 mg L^-1) and they are originated from different locations in The Netherlands. Besides the methodological aspects and the obtained analytical results, 10 relevant performance characteristics (limit of detection, recovery, repeatability, reproducibility, measuring range, trueness, lack of fit, expanded uncertainty of measurement, robustness and selectivity) are defined, calculated and discussed. The validated method is routinely applied in monitoring programs. This work can serve as a guideline for a complete validation assessment in environmental matrices.