Gas chromatography (GC) is an analytical technique that characterizes a chemical mixture by separation and identification of the chemical components. At Chemistry Matters, data generated from GC is used in arson investigations, biomonitoring, and environmental forensic investigations. Developing a concise timeline...
In the first post of this series on River PAHs characterization, we described the background to why we have spent many hours driving across Alberta from border to border to collect sediment samples from the rivers of southern Alberta.
For the last few years we have spent a lot of our free time collecting sediment samples from rivers across southern Alberta and characterizing these for Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs). Often driving many hours across prairie gravel roads for a single good sample, it quickly became a passion of quality...
In the first post of this series, I described the basis for how we became involved in determining a method for the detection of a natural, biogenic source of toluene. In this post, I describe how the process works and provide some thoughts on how to conduct an investigation.
You have had a spill… don’t panic, everything will be fine. Accidents happen. It is what you do next that is important. I have worked on many spills and here are what I believe are four of the most important things from a chemist’s perspective.
In 2015, Chemistry Matters Inc. (CMI) provided the scientific support for Nexen at Long Lake during their emulsion release. As part of that role, I pored over data every evening, often long through the night to be able to communicate results to regulators and Nexen management and to put together the next day's...