DIN EN 15853:2010-11

The standard DIN EN 15853 specifies a validated method for the determination of the total deposition of mercury which can be used within the framework of the European Council Directive on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe and the Fourth Daughter Directive. The requirements the method has to meet in accordance with the EU Directives are specified in this European Standard. The description of the method includes the sampling of deposition using cylindrical deposition gauges, and mercury analysis using Cold Vapour Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (CVAAS) or Cold Vapour Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry (CVAFS). The performance characteristics given in this standard have been determined in comparative field validation tests. The field tests have been carried out at two European measurement locations (in Slovenia and Sweden) over a period of seven months. When parallel sampling was carried out weekly, collection vessels openly exposed at all times (funnel-bottle combination or Bergerhoff vessel, "bulk collector") and collection vessels which are open only during wet precipitation events ("wet only collectors") have been used. Analysis has been carried out following procedures which are currently applied in Europe for the determination of mercury. The tests showed the suitability of the method for the determination of mercury deposition in at rural, urban and industrial sites. The execution of the field trial validation tests has been funded by the EU and EFTA. The method is applicable to the measurement of mercury in deposition between 1 ng/(m²×d) and 100 ng/(m²×d). The European Standard has been prepared by CEN/TC 264/WG 25 "Mercury measurement methods in ambient air and deposition". On the national level the responsible Committee is Subcommittee NA 134-04-02-10 UA "Messen von Metallen und Halbmetallen (I)" ("Measurement of metals and semimetals (I)") of KRdL at VDI and DIN.