Beryllium is an important analyte in industrial hygiene because of the risk of exposed workers developing Chronic Beryllium Disease (CBD). CBD is a granulomatous lung disease that is caused by the body’s immune system response to inhaled dust or fumes containing beryllium, a human carcinogen (2). Surface wipe samples and air filter samples are collected to monitor the workplace. This practice addresses the problem of spurious results caused by the presence of interfering elements in the solution analyzed. The practice has been evaluated for all elements having emission spectra near the 313.042 and 313.107 nm beryllium lines, as well as elements of general concern including aluminum, calcium, iron and lead. Below is a table listing each possible spectrally interfering element:

Measurement of beryllium on the order of 1 ppb (0.003 µg Be/100 cm² wipe sample) has been successfully accomplished in the presence of spectrally interfering elements on the order of hundreds of ppm. This method has been validated on matrices containing 10 mg of each of the above elements. In some cases including interferents such as chromium and calcium, the single 2 mL beryllium extraction chromatography resin can handle >100 mg of total dissolved solids and still deliver >90 % beryllium yield. Should the matrix contain greater amounts of contaminants, additional resin may be used or, more likely, a combination of different resins may be used. (3,4).

1.1 This practice covers the separation of beryllium from other metals and metalloids in acid solutions, by extraction chromatography, for subsequent determination of beryllium by atomic spectroscopy techniques such as inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES).

1.2 This practice is applicable to samples of settled dust that have been collected in accordance with Practices D 6966 or D 7296.

1.3 This practice is compatible with a wide variety of acid digestion techniques used in digesting settled dust samples, such as those described in Test Method D 7035.

1.4 This practice is appropriate for the preparation of settled dust samples where an unacceptable bias is suspected or known because of spectral interferences caused by other metals or metalloids present in the sample. This practice may also be appropriate for the analysis of other types of samples.

1.5 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.