Stability of explosives in environmental water and soil samples

This report focuses on data generated for the purpose of establishing the stability of HMX, RDX, TNT, and DNT explosives in environmental water and soil samples. The study was carried out over a one year time frame and took into account as many variables as possible within the constraints of budget and time. The objectives of the study were: (1) to provide a data base which could be used to provide guidance on pre-analytical holding times for regulatory purposes; and (2) and to provide a basis for the evaluation of data which is generated outside of the currently allowable holding times for quality assurance purposes. The experimental design consisted of three water samples and three soil samples. The water samples were distilled-in-glass water, a ground water, and surface water. The soil samples were a US Army Toxic and Hazardous Materials Agency soil, a Captina silt loam from Roane County, Tennessee, and a McLaurin sandy loam from Stone County, Mississippi. The analytes consisted of four explosives HMX, RDX, TNT and DNT. Several approaches were taken to estimate the MHTs for each explosive because a standard definition for MHT has not been adopted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). First, a proceduremore » recommended by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) was modified and applied to the data base. Secondly, a procedure developed by Environmental Science and Engineering (ESE) for the analysis of a similar data base was applied. This report is intended to summarize the findings of the study in such a way as to allow individual decisions to be made regarding the quality of environmental data. The use of the data base may well be different for analyses conducted under RCRA, for example, than for those conducted under NPDES permit requirements. For this reason, the summary statistics for each replicate analysis is presented in the appendices of this report. 18 refs., 4 figs., 14 tabs.« less