FY 1983

Collection of suspended particulate matter for hydrocarbon analyses: Continuous flow centrifugation vs. filtration

Bates, T.S., S.E. Hamilton, and J.D. Cline

Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci., 16, 107–112, doi: 10.1016/0272-7714(83)90097-5 (1983)

High-speed, continuous-flow centrifugation and glass-fiber filtration were used to collect suspended matter from river water and waste water effluent for hydrocarbon analyses. Both methods collected equivalent weights of total suspended matter and similar particle size distributions and were >90% efficient for particles >4.0 µm. Glass-fiber filters retained more lipid-extractable organic matter and saturated hydrocarbons than did continuous-flow centrifugation. Adsorption of dissolved or colloidal organic compounds onto glass-fiber filters resulted in an overestimate of the organics associated with particulate matter.