Overview
ISO 5667-17:2008 - "Water quality - Sampling - Part 17: Guidance on sampling of bulk suspended solids" provides guidance for collecting bulk suspended solids from freshwater systems, with emphasis on flowing waters such as rivers and streams. The standard addresses planning, sampling strategies, equipment options and field/laboratory handling needed to obtain representative samples for physical, chemical, biological and toxicological analysis of suspended particulate matter.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Scope & applicability: Focus on bulk suspended solids (> 0.45 µm) in flowing freshwater; some guidance can be applied to lakes and reservoirs but field programmes may differ.
- Sampling programme design: Emphasis on defining objectives, sampling points, frequency, timing and statistical confidence for trend or compliance studies.
- Dependencies on discharge: Guidance notes the strong influence of flow velocity/discharge on suspended solids concentration and transport dynamics.
- Sampling equipment: Overview of device types including passive samplers, bag samplers and bulk samplers; descriptions and biases of devices are provided.
- Sampling methods: Practical coverage of centrifuging, settling, filtration, tangential-flow filtration and pumping requirements - with discussion of advantages, limitations and biases for each method.
- On-site and post-collection handling: Identification, preservation, transport, sample records and storage considerations to protect sample integrity for chemical and toxicological analyses.
- Quality assurance & data interpretation: Field QA measures, centrifuge-specific QA and approaches for interpreting temporal and spatial variability of suspended solids.
- Safety: Field safety precautions for sampling operations.
Practical applications and users
ISO 5667-17:2008 is designed for professionals who need reliable bulk suspended solids for analysis or decision-making:
- Environmental scientists and researchers studying sediment-bound nutrients (e.g., phosphorus), trace metals or organic contaminants.
- Water quality monitoring agencies conducting ambient monitoring, regulatory compliance or effluent impact assessments in rivers and streams.
- Laboratories and consultants performing particle-size analysis, particulate organic carbon, geochemical characterisation or toxicity testing.
- Project managers planning long-term sample collection and storage for research or remediation programmes.
The standard highlights that analyses may require sample masses from grams to hundreds of grams depending on analytical goals, and it advises choosing methods that minimise contamination and sampling bias.
Related standards
ISO 5667 family (selected):
- ISO 5667-1 - Sampling programme design and techniques
- ISO 5667-3 - Preservation and handling of water samples
- ISO 5667-4, -6 - Sampling from lakes and rivers
- ISO 5667-14, -15 - Quality assurance and sludge/sediment handling
- Other ISO 5667 parts address biotesting, groundwater and marine sediments
Keywords: ISO 5667-17:2008, water quality, sampling, bulk suspended solids, freshwater sampling, river sampling, suspended particulate matter, sampling programme, centrifuging, filtration, quality assurance.
