Can AIHA Proficiency Analytical Testing (PAT) data for a laboratory from recent rounds be used to estimate the analytical error portion of the sampling and analysis error (SAE)?
No. The PAT program is designed to help consumers select laboratories that are proficient. In the PAT program analyses of quartz, the “true” values against which a laboratory’s results are compared are based on results from reference laboratories that are a subset of the participating laboratories. Assuming that the PAT samples were made from accurately delivered consensus reference material and that the participants all used the same techniques, instrumentation and methodology, and that the samples are not otherwise flawed so as to introduce bias, the best accuracy that can be achieved by consensus analyses is limited by the standard error of the precision of that analysis [SD/(n), where SD is the standard deviation in the results among the n reference labs]. However, the PAT program is not suited to achieve the best accuracy: In the case of crystalline silica analyses, the analytical equipment and methods vary between labs. X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy (IR), and colorimet
No. The PAT program is designed to help consumers select laboratories that are proficient. In the PAT program analyses of quartz, the “true” values against which a laboratory’s results are compared are based on results from reference laboratories that are a subset of the participating laboratories. Assuming that the PAT samples were made from accurately delivered consensus reference material and that the participants all used the same techniques, instrumentation and methodology, and that the samples are not otherwise flawed so as to introduce bias, the best accuracy that can be achieved by consensus analyses is limited by the standard error of the precision of that analysis [SD/(n), where SD is the standard deviation in the results among the n reference labs]. However, the PAT program is not suited to achieve the best accuracy: In the case of crystalline silica analyses, the analytical equipment and methods vary between labs. X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy (IR), and colorimet
Related Questions
- Can AIHA Proficiency Analytical Testing (PAT) data for a laboratory from recent rounds be used to estimate the analytical error portion of the sampling and analysis error (SAE)?
- Why did my COLA laboratory receive a PT00B letter at the close of a proficiency testing (PT) event?
- What data will be used for testing?
