Eclox Manual

Section 2 General information

In no event will the manufacturer be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages resulting from any defect or omission in this manual. The manufacturer reserves the right to make changes in this manual and the products it describes at any time, without notice or obligation. Revised editions are found on the manufacturer’s website.

2.1 Safety information

Please read this entire manual before unpacking, setting up, or operating this equipment. Pay attention to all danger and caution statements. Failure to do so could result in serious injury to the operator or damage to the equipment.

Make sure that the protection provided by this equipment is not impaired, do not use or install this equipment in any manner other than that specified in this manual.

CAUTION: Chemical Hazards. Always follow appropriate laboratory safety procedures when handling chemicals. Always wear all personal protective instrument appropriate to the chemicals you are handling.

2.1.1 Use of hazard information

DANGER

Indicates a potentially or imminently hazardous situation which, if not avoided, will result in death or serious injury.

WARNING

Indicates a potentially or imminently hazardous situation which, if not avoided, could result in death or serious injury.

CAUTION

Indicates a potentially hazardous situation that may result in minor or moderate injury.

Important Note: Indicates a situation which, if not avoided, may cause damage to the instrument. Information that requires special emphasis.

Note: Information that supplements points in the main text.

2.1.2 Precautionary labels

Read all labels and tags attached to the instrument. Personal injury or damage to the instrument could occur if not observed. A symbol, if noted on the instrument, will be included with a danger or caution statement in the manual.

This symbol, if noted on the instrument, references the instruction manual for operation and/or safety information.

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Electrical equipment marked with this symbol may not be disposed of in

European public disposal systems after 12 August of 2005. In conformity with

European local and national regulations (EU Directive 2002/96/EC), European electrical equipment users must now return old or end-of life equipment to the

Producer for disposal at no charge to the user.

Note: For return for recycling, please contact the equipment producer or supplier for instructions on how to return end-of-life equipment, producer-supplied electrical accessories, and all auxiliary items for proper disposal.

This symbol, when noted on a product enclosure or barrier, indicates that a risk of electrical shock and/or electrocution exists.

This symbol, if noted on the product, indicates the need for protective eye wear.

2.2 Product overview

The Eclox™ Rapid Response Test Kit is used to do first line water testing. The kit is a generic qualitative test that gives a broad indication of water quality. To do a proper toxicity test, identify a baseline using the product in the waters to be tested.

The kit can be used to:

• Compare and prioritize possible source waters that might be used in a purification process to make drinking water.

• Give information to an operator to help the operator identify the correct water treatment process for the quality of the source water available.

• Be a regular quality assurance test on the drinking water made or the water given for drinking and, if applicable, on the source water.

Other configurations are available, including the Eclox ‘toxicity only’ kit and the luminometer by itself.

2.2.1 Test descriptions

Eight tests are included in the Eclox™ Rapid Response Test Kit:

• Chemiluminescence Toxicity Test—shows the toxicity of the water sample. This test uses a plant enzyme which when mixed with other reagents creates light

(chemiluminescence). Pollutants in the water sample prevent this reaction which reduces the amount of light that is created. The more pollutant that is in the sample, the less light that is created. The light made by the sample water is compared to a pure water reference and the percentage inhibition of the light made is measured and made known.

• Arsenic Test—measures the arsenic content of the water sample. Arsenic is a common poison and industrial pollutant. Arsenic is also in chemical warfare (CW)

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agents, such as Lewisite. The result of this test can be read in mg/L from a comparison chart.

• Pesticide/Nerve Agent Test—gives a YES/NO answer if pesticide/nerve agents are in the water sample.

• Chlorine Test—measures how much free chlorine is in the water sample and gives the results in mg/L. Systems using monochloramines may choose to monitor total chlorine.

Chlorine is frequently used to disinfect water for human consumption. The quantity of chlorine used must be carefully controlled and the free residual concentration of the chlorine in the water gives a useful means of monitoring the effectiveness of the water treatment done. Chlorinated water can, however, cause damage to the Reverse Osmosis (RO) filter of water purification equipment and should not be used as a source water in a RO type of process.

• Color Test—a comparison test that compares the water sample with a calibrated gradient color disc. The results are read in platinum cobalt (Pt-Co) color units.

Color in water may be caused by the presence of natural metallic ions (iron and manganese), peat materials, plankton, weeds and industrial wastes.

• Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Test—measures the level of dissolved solids in the water sample. TDS and the conductivity of a sample are related. The TDS is approximately 0.7 of the conductivity result (µS/cm

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).

• pH Test—measures the pH level of the water sample.

• Luminescent Bacteria Toxicity Test (optional)—a biotest that measures the toxicity of environmental samples. Toxicity is a biological or biochemical sum parameter that can not be measured by chemical analysis. Toxicity is a measure of the effect of a sample on living organisms, biological systems and enzymes.

Other biotests such as fish, daphnia and algae tests are more complex and, because other biotests use higher living organisms, are also controversial. In the practice of environmental analysis, the Luminescent Bacteria Toxicity Test has shown to be fast, simple, reliable and sensitive.

The Luminescent Bacteria Toxicity Test uses natural bacteria that make light.

Toxic samples decrease the amount of light the bacteria make. The more toxic the sample, the less light the bacteria make. The amount of light that is made by the bacteria after exposure to a sample is compared to the amount of light made by the bacteria after exposure to a control to identify the percent inhibition value of the sample. The control contains no sample but a non-toxic reagent blank (2%

NaCl solution).

The reagent set is sold independently.

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The Luminescent Bacteria Toxicity (LBT) Test can be done using either the:

• Measurement Luminescence procedure—used in the lab when a thorough assessment of the inhibitory effects of a sample is necessary. Use the LBT measurement luminescence procedure if the test needs to be done according to

ISO 11348.

• Screening Luminescence procedure—used in the field or in an emergency situation when a rapid assessment of the inhibitory effects of a sample is necessary. The LBT screening luminescence procedure is a simplified test procedure that uses the same reagents according to ISO 11348 but at ambient conditions.

• LIMIT measure procedure—the same as the screening luminescence procedure. However, the LIMIT measure procedure lets the user set a LIMIT value on the luminometer. The LIMIT value is used by the luminometer to include in the test results whether the percent inhibition is above or below the

LIMIT value.

2.2.2 Test setup

There are three basic operations to be done when using the kit:

• Pre-deployment checks—complete before starting on a series of tests. Refer to the Quick Start Guide (28878-88) on the lid of the case.

• Luminometer test—test the operation of the luminometer before

Chemiluminescence Toxicity Tests or Luminescent Bacteria Toxicity Tests are done.

• Luminometer calibration—calibrate the luminometer each day before

Chemiluminescence Toxicity Tests are done.

• Measure samples—measure the samples with the tests.

2.3 Unpack the instrument

Remove the Eclox Rapid Response Test Kit from the shipping carton and check it for any visible damage. If any items are missing or damaged, contact the manufacturer or a sales representative immediately. Refer to the packaging guide supplied with the kit for equipment descriptions.

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