Abstract
The elemental analysis of water is critical for ensuring safety
of the environment and human consumption. Government
regulations set limits for a wide range of contaminants,
including elements, in water to protect human health
and ecosystems, identify pollution sources, and monitor
treatment effectiveness. To ensure complete digestion and
compliance with regulatory standards, accurate elemental
analysis of environmental samples with effective sample
preparation methods is required. The U.S. EPA Method 3015A
is a commonly used sample preparation method for water
samples that employs microwave-assisted acid digestion with
method defined parameters. The primary focus of this study
uses the MARSXpress 2.0™ scientific microwave system and
MARSXpress™ vessels for digestion of two Certified Reference
Material (CRM) water samples as well as an unknown water
sample from a local lake. Each sample was prepared following
EPA Method 3015A with analysis by ICP-MS following EPA
Method 200.8. Elemental recoveries from the EPA Method
3015A digestions are compared to the certified values for
each CRM to demonstrate the accuracy of the method.
