Results and effects of homogeneity and stability studies carried out by X-ray fluorescence on the new reference material BAM-H010

The Federal Institute for materials research and testing (BAM) in cooperation with the Fachhochschule Munster has developed a new certified polymeric reference material, BAM-H010. The reference material consists of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene terpolymer (ABS) and has been doped with different contents of the elements Br, Cd, Cr, Hg and Pb. The monitoring of these elements is demanded in the EU directive 2002/95/EG, commonly referred to as RoHS. We have shown that the uncertainty contribution of the thermal long-term stability (u (stability)) is negligible compared to the contribution to the uncertainty caused by the method used for the characterization of the elemental content and the batch inhomogeneity (u (homogeneity)). The stability of the ABS material during exposure of the samples with hard X-radiation leads to a degradation of the ABS matrix with either long- or short-chain products.