Lead-based paint testing technologies: summary of an EPA/HUD field study.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development sponsored a field study of portable technologies for testing for lead in paint in three U.S. cities in 1993. Six chemical test kits and six X-ray fluorescence instruments, which represented the two main types of portable technologies available for residential lead testing at that time, were evaluated. Painted building components in single-family and multifamily housing units were selected to assess the performance of these products under real-world conditions. The study found that the chemical test kits were not effective in distinguishing lead-based paint, as defined by federal standards, from nonlead based paint. The X-ray fluorescence instruments were, under certain circumstances, found to be effective. The study filled an informational gap about the accuracy and precision of the portable lead-testing technologies. This article describes the design of the study and its major findings.
Schmehl
R L
RL
QuanTech, Arlington, VA 22209-1607, USA.
Cox
D C
DC
Dewalt
F G
FG
Haugen
M M
MM
Koyak
R A
RA
Schwemberger
J G
JG
Scalera
J V
JV
D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004867:Equipment Design; D006798:Housing; D006801:Humans; D007854:Lead / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D010150:Paint / Q000032:analysis*; D013052:Spectrometry, X-Ray Emission / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000592:standards; D014481:United States; D014484:United States Environmental Protection Agency; D014504:Urban Health
D007854:Lead