The evaluation of an analytical protocol for the determination of substances in waste for hazard classification

Abstract

The classification of waste as hazardous could soon be assessed in Europe using largely the hazard properties of its constituents, according to the the Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) regulation. Comprehensive knowledge of the component constituents of a given waste will therefore be necessary. An analytical protocol for determining waste composition is proposed, which includes using inductively coupled plasma (ICP) screening methods to identify major elements and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) screening techniques to measure organic compounds. The method includes a gross or indicator measure of 'pools' of higher molecular weight organic substances that are taken to be less bioactive and less hazardous, and of unresolved 'mass' during the chromatography of volatile and semi-volatile compounds. The concentration of some elements and specific compounds that are linked to specific hazard properties and are subject to specific regulation (examples include: heavy metals, chromium(VI), cyanides, organo-halogens, and PCBs) are determined by classical quantitative analysis. To check the consistency of the analysis, the sum of the concentrations (including unresolved 'pools') should give a mass balance between 90% and 110%. Thirty-two laboratory samples comprising different industrial wastes (liquids and solids) were tested by two routine service laboratories, to give circa 7000 parameter results. Despite discrepancies in some parameters, a satisfactory sum of estimated or measured concentrations (analytical balance) of 90% was reached for 20 samples (63% of the overall total) during this first test exercise, with identified reasons for most of the unsatisfactory results. Regular use of this protocol (which is now included in the French legislation) has enabled service laboratories to reach a 90% mass balance for nearly all the solid samples tested, and most of liquid samples (difficulties were caused in some samples from polymers in solution and vegetable oil). The protocol is submitted to French and European normalization bodies (AFNOR and CEN) and further improvements are awaited.

General Scheme to Evaluate the Dangerousness of Wastes in Order to Manage Them by Producer/Holder Organizations

“…The relative solubility of different substances can change over the time along with rheological properties (viscosities and redistributions of substances between solid or liquid phases of a waste). The literature in the field (Hennerbert et al 2013) states that using the combined type of methods, depending on each specific case, "it is possible to quantify in essential lines the composition of the waste batch sample in the terms of specific substances" taking into consideration that when performing computation of the hazardous properties "the level of concentration that impact the waste classification as hazardous through the contained present substances, in legislation, varies in a range of 0.1-10 % and at those concentrations the relative error of the semi-quantitative analysis seems to be reduced." Always the pre-assessment waste characterization phase is a work done in consultation with the client and within a multidisciplinary team of assessors and analysts.…”

Mineral Nanoparticles in Waste: Potential Sources, Occurrence in Some Engineered Nanomaterials Leachates, Municipal Sewage Sludges and Municipal Landfill Sludges

“…Membranes of cellulose nitrate for microfiltration (Whatman 0.45 µm, GE Life Science) and of regenerated cellulose for ultrafiltration (Ultracel ® 3 KDa, Millipore) were used. This method is statistically equivalent to tangential filtration with recirculation through regenerated cellulose membrane (Sartorius Sartocon 200 Hydrosart Slice) with a cut-off limit of 450 nm and 3 KDa, that was used in a previous study [19,20], but it is much more faster (result not shown). The statistical equivalency could indicate that no clogging occurred within the stirred cells.…”

“…Currently, the differentiation between natural colloids and ENPs in wastes is not technically feasible in routine. In waste leachates, successive microfiltration and ultrafiltration accompanied by element analysis is described by Hennebert et al [13]. More sophisticated methods include e.g.…”

“…The elements of group #1 (Si, Ca, Ti, Mg, Fe, Mn, P) are ubiquitous in waste total content and colloidal form in leachate fraction (frequently found in 25 waste leachates) [13].…”

“…The sizes measured by PCS on the microfiltrate fraction (filtered at 450 nm) were frequently larger than the cut-off value of the filter, and were misleading. This results from polydispersity of most of the samples and the mathematical assumptions for transformation of auto-correlation function to a distribution of size of particles µm [20]. Our conclusion was that another technique should be used for size measurements, and thus NTA was introduced into our protocol.…”