Tony Edwards

Preliminary investigation on the use of ion-exchange resins for monitoring river water composition

Abstract The potential for using ion exchange membranes to monitor river water chemistry is assessed by comparing their use with conventional water sampling. The results from a study between two chemically contrasting catchment areas are presented. Initial results indicate that the resin method may possess a number of advantages. It appears that ion exchange resin may be useful in providing general ‘finger print’ type information for river systems. The direct multi-element analysis of resin strips by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) removes the need for either storage or filtering of water samples, both of which are sources of potential contamination and error.

Quantification of phosphorus fractions in soil solution

Abstract Various chemical treatments and analytical procedures have been used to quantify inorganic and organic fractions of the total phosphorus present in soil solution. Molybdate reactive PO 4 3− (the fraction most commonly used to specify soluble P) accounted for less than 30% of the total P in solution collected from a highly organic upland soil. Substantial amounts of organically associated and non reactive P compounds were also present. Soil solutions obtained by centrifugation contained up to 30 times more total P than when extracted in situ by suction cup lysimeters.