Micro-homogeneity evaluation of a bovine kidney candidate reference material

The minimum sample intake for which a reference material remains homogeneous is one of the parameters that must be estimated in the homogeneity assessment study of reference materials. In this work, Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis was used to evaluate this quantity in a bovine kidney candidate reference material. The mass fractions of 9 inorganic constituents were determined in subsamples between 1 and 2 mg in order to estimate the relative homogeneity factor (HE) and the minimum sample mass to achieve 5% and 10% precision on a 95% confidence level. Results obtained for HE in all the analyzed elements were satisfactory. The estimated minimum sample intake was between 2 mg and 40 mg, depending on the element.

Certified Reference Materials for the Characterisation of Multifunctional Materials

Multifunctional materials are created by intimately integrating different materials. The assessment of the local properties and composition of the different components of such a multifunctional material necessarily relies on techniques with sufficient spatial resolution. The increased use of these microanalysis or microprobe techniques has created a demand for appropriate quality assurance tools, such as reference materials. In this paper a number of issues related to the certification of reference materials for multifunctional materials are discussed. Examples of reference materials are shown to illustrate the particular challenges the reference material producer is faced with such as micro-homogeneity, minimum sample intake and stability.