ALGECO’s invisible heroes - Part II

As mentioned in the last update, the lab operators are crucial to the water analyses. They are responsible for the analyses throughout the process, from arrival, conservation, thawing, and preparation of the samples to the analyses themselves and the registration and reporting of the results. In the picture below, as an illustration example, one of the lab engineers, Kari Sundal Karlaug, is preparing a set of water samples for nitrogen analyses. Kari is one of seven people working in the laboratory at Veas.

The sample preparation for the measurement of ammonium concentration of the water samples.

Using her technical skills and experience, Kari manages the analyses and reports with high quality and efficiency. In the picture below, the same set of water samples is reacting, so the ammonium and ammonia concentrations can be quantified using photo spectroscopy.

A set of water samples after successful sample preparation for measuring the ammonium concentration.

After all the tubes have been measured, all the results are registered in the lab sample database according to the registration done upon arrival of the samples. In the final step, the results are reported back to NIVA in the format requested, which enables clear communication if there is a need for more insight into the results or to discuss unexpected results.

Kari, in action, put one sample at a time into the spectrophotometer to get measurements of the ammonium concentration.

We hope this small insight gives everyone a clear view of the immense technical work behind the project's results. We are also delighted to use this opportunity to credit our lab engineers, who are crucial for a successful ALGECO project.