Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. 17th edition.

The first edition of Standard Methods was published in 1905. Each subsequent edition presented significant improvements of methodology and enlarged its scope to include techniques suitable for examination of many types of samples encountered in the assessment and control of water quality and water pollution. A brief history of Standard Methods is of interest because of its contemporary relevance. A movement for securing the adoption of more uniform and efficient methods of water analysis led in the 1880's to the organization of a special committee of the Chemical Section of American Association for the Advancement of Science.... In the Fourteenth Edition, the separation of test methods for water from those for wastewater was discontinued. All methods for a given component or characteristic appeared under a single heading. The coordination of methods was reflected in the revised numbering system. The major divisions of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Edition were as follows: Part 100 - General Introduction, Part 200- Physical Examination, Part 300- Determination of Metals, Part 400-Determination of Inorganic Nonmetallic Constituents, Part 500-Determination of Organic Constitutents, Part 600-Automated Laboratory Analyses, Part 700-Examination of Water and Wastewater for Radioactivity, Part 800-Bioassay Methods for Aquatic Organisms, Part 900-Microbiological Examination of Water, Part 1000-Biological Examination of water. The Sixteenth Edition, with minor differences, the organization of the Fourteenth Edition has been retained. Numerous changes, revisions, and improvements in methods have been made and the most noteworthy are mentioned in this preface.