DIN EN ISO 6878 Water Quality – Determination of Phosphorus – Ammonium Molybdate Spectrometric Method

DIN EN 6878 is an international standard that specifies methods for the determination of organic pollutants in wastewater and wastewater treatment plants. It describes analytical methods for the determination of microbiological and chemical parameters to assess the quality of wastewater and ensure compliance with legal requirements. The standard aims to support the monitoring and optimization of wastewater treatment processes in order to minimize environmental impact. By standardizing procedures, DIN EN 6878 ensures the reliability and comparability of analytical data in water management. 

The standard specifies four methods for the determination of different types of phosphorus compounds, which may be present in groundwater, surface water and wastewater in various concentrations in dissolved and undissolved form. 

1. determination of orthophosphate
2. determination of orthophosphate by solvent extraction
3. determination of hydrolysable phosphate and orthophosphate
4. determination of total phosphorus after digestion

The phosphorus content of water has a major influence on the formation of biofilms and the growth of algae, so testing for phosphorus is a standard method of water analysis, for example in the quality control of swimming pools, lakes and rivers. Another important application for phosphorus testing is agriculture: As an essential nutrient for plants, phosphorus plays an important role in the fertilization of agricultural land, hence the European Commission´s focus on phosphorus in the context of sustainable resource management. The use of sewage sludge as a fertilizer is subject to strict limits, so regular testing of the phosphorus concentration is an integral part of municipal and industrial wastewater treatment. 

In the SPECORD PLUS series, Analytik Jena offers a highly accurate, user-friendly solution for standard-compliant phosphorus determination using UV/Vis spectrophotometry. The high-performance photometers deliver consistent, reproducible measurement results and meet the analytical requirements of today and tomorrow.

Our solutions for DIN EN ISO 6878

Sources

• DIN EN ISO 6878 - 2004-09 - Beuth.de
• ISO 6878:2004 - Water quality — Determination of phosphorus — Ammonium molybdate spectrometric method
• DIN EN ISO 6878:2004 DE - Wasserbeschaffenheit - Bestimmung von Phosphor - Photometrisches Verfahren mittels Ammoniummolybdat (ISO 6878:2004); Deutsche Fassung EN ISO 6878:2004 (Foreign Standard) (ansi.org)
• Je weniger, desto besser – Phosphat in Oberflächengewässern bestimmen (vogel.de)
• (Microsoft Word - P-13_Phosphor_Weißdruck2018_10_24.docx) (lawa.de)