This European Standard specifies a standard method for determining total gaseous mercury (TGM) in ambient
air using cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometry (CVAAS), or cold vapour atomic fluorescence
spectrometry (CVAFS).
This European Standard is applicable to background sites that are in accordance with the requirements of
Directive 2004/107/EC and to urban and industrial sites.
The performance characteristics of the method have been determined in comparative field validation tests
carried out at four European locations: two background and two industrial sites. The method was tested for
two months at each site over a period of twelve months using automated equipment currently used in Europe
for determination of TGM in ambient air.
The working range of the method covers the range of ambient air concentrations from those found at
background sites, typically less than 2 ng/m3, up to those found at industrial sites where higher concentrations
are expected. A maximum daily average up to 300 ng/m3 was measured during the field trials.
Results are reported as the average mass of TGM per volume of air at 293,15 K and 101,325 kPa, measured
over a specified time period, in nanograms per cubic metre.
BS EN 15852:2010 history
2010BS EN 15852:2010 Ambient air quality - Standard method for the determination of total gaseous mercury