Piloting a Proficiency Testing Program for Laboratory Sampling of Animal Feed Materials.

Background: Laboratory sampling is a significant source of error in feed testing. Proficiency testing programs such as the Association of American Feed Control Officials Proficiency Testing Program are an effective means of assessing error in and among analytical methods. However, all proficiency test items are comminuted and blended to control variability among items, effectively minimizing sampling error.

Effect of Test Portion Mass on Vitamin A Testing in Animal Feed Materials.

Background: Vitamin A test results have historically been notorious for poor repeatability and reproducibility. This problem has been discussed at length in Association of American Feed Control Officials Laboratory Methods and Services Committee meetings.

Objective: The objective of this work was to assess the effect of test portion mass on the repeatability of vitamin A test results.

Considerations for inference to Decision Units.

The goal of sampling is to take a small portion of a target material for analysis instead of collecting all the material. If sampling is done following certain principles, then inference can be made from analytical results of the portion taken back to the entire target material (Decision Unit). There are different sampling strategies that are dependent on the properties of the material being sampled as well as different methods for making inferences from analytical results to the Decision Unit (DU).

QC of sampling processes- a first overview: from field to test portion.

Quality control (QC) is a systematic approach for estimating and minimizing significant error contributions to the measurement uncertainty from the full sampling and analysis process. Many types of QC measures can be implemented; the three dealt with here are primary sampling reproducibility, sample processing reproducibility, and contamination. Sampling processes can be subject to QC by applying a replication experiment, used either from the top by replication of the entire sampling/ preparation/analysis process, or in a hierarchical fashion successively at each subsequent sampling stage.

Considerations for sampling contaminants in agricultural soils.

Sampling agricultural soils for contaminants is relatively new. Existing standard sampling protocols used for the evaluation of soil nutrients are likely insufficient for contaminants. The main reasons are the very low analyte levels and differences in heterogeneity between nutrients and contaminants.

Considerations in sampling of water.

Sampling water is no different than sampling any other media. It starts with the development of Sample Quality Criteria, understanding of material properties, then application of the Theory of Sampling. The main difference with sampling water as opposed to solids is the material properties.

Sample quality criteria.

The concept of Sample Quality Criteria (SQC) is the initial step in the scientific approach to representative sampling. It includes the establishment of sampling objectives, Decision Unit (DU), and confidence. Once fully defined, these criteria serve as input, in addition to material properties, to the Theory of Sampling for developing a representative sampling protocol.

Perchlorate contamination from the detonation of insensitive high-explosive rounds.

The insensitive high-explosive PAX-21 was the first of its kind fielded in an artillery munition by the United States military. This formulation contains three main components: RDX, dinitroanisole, and ammonium perchlorate (AP). In March 2012, detonation tests were conducted on PAX-21 60mm mortar rounds to determine the energetic residues resulting from high-order and blow-in-place (BIP) detonations.

Field observations of the persistence of Comp B explosives residues in a salt marsh impact area.

Field observations of weathering Comp B (RDX/TNT 60/40) residue were made on a live-fire training range over four years. The Comp B residue was formed by low-order detonations of 120-mm mortar projectiles. Physical changes were the disaggregation of initially solid chunks into masses of smaller diameter pieces and formation of red phototransformation products that washed off with rain or tidal flooding.

Leg and calf press training modes and their impact on jump performance adaptations.

To examine the effects of resistance exercise (REX) mode on jump performance, subjects were assigned to one of three groups over a 6-week period with no cross-over. Subjects were assigned to leg and calf press REX on either a standard (n = 10) or ergometer (n = 9) device while a third group (n = 9) served as controls (CTRL). REX subjects worked out twice per week, which consisted of a three-set, 10-repetition paradigm for leg and calf press exercises.

Blood lactate responses to leg presses performed against inertial resistance.

Introduction: A flywheel ergometer has been devised which employs gravity-independent inertial resistance. Concentric and eccentric actions, which are integral to weight-bearing and ambulation activities, may be done on this ergometer. However, blood lactate responses to exercise on the ergometer by contractile mode and training volume are unknown.

Identity and distribution of residues of energetic compounds at army live-fire training ranges.

Environmental investigations have been conducted at 23 military firing ranges in the United States and Canada. The specific training facilities most frequently evaluated were hand grenade, antitank rocket, and artillery ranges. Energetic compounds (explosives and propellants) were determined and linked to the type of munition used and the major mechanisms of deposition.

The effect of particle size reduction by grinding on subsampling variance for explosives residues in soil.

Efforts to characterize the surface soil contamination on military training ranges have been compromised by the inability to obtain representative subsamples of soils submitted to analytical laboratories for determination of explosives residues. Two factors affecting subsampling error for explosives residues were examined using soils collected from hand grenade and anti-tank ranges. These factors were increased subsample size and particle size reduction prior to subsampling of soils.