Chapter 2
Sampling
Outlook
Sampling is an important task in all analytical procedures. The two main
aspects that span the complex field of this issue, the sampling type and the
sampling strategy, are discussed briefly in this chapter.
Sampling is one of the most fundamental parts in organic geochemical analyses. It is
the base for reliable answers to the research questions that are initially intended to
solve. Properly defined samples as well as an efficiently performed sampling are
prerequisites for a reliable and successful entire analytical process—from the idea to
the conclusions.
The complexity of sampling includes the type of material and corresponding
sampling techniques as well as the strategy. The latter one covers e.g. frequency of
sampling, number and quantity of samples. Since sampling is a complex issue a
thorough introduction to this field requires a very comprehensive discussion. Further
on, this book dominantly focuses on the laboratory work. Therefore, only a brief
summary of sampling aspects is given in the following.
2.1 Sampling Type and Techniques
All samples studied in Organic Geochemistry can be roughly classified either by
their origin (fossil matter, environmental samples) or their state of matter (solid,
liquid, gaseous). Noteworthy, gas analyses play a minor role in Organic Geochemistry and are not handled here.
There are some clear differences between the individual sample classes, but also
some overlaps. Differences are quite obvious e.g. between river water and river
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
J. Schwarzbauer, B. Jovančićević, Introduction to Analytical Methods in Organic
Geochemistry, Fundamentals in Organic Geochemistry,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-38592-7_2
5
Sampling
Outlook
Sampling is an important task in all analytical procedures. The two main
aspects that span the complex field of this issue, the sampling type and the
sampling strategy, are discussed briefly in this chapter.
Sampling is one of the most fundamental parts in organic geochemical analyses. It is
the base for reliable answers to the research questions that are initially intended to
solve. Properly defined samples as well as an efficiently performed sampling are
prerequisites for a reliable and successful entire analytical process—from the idea to
the conclusions.
The complexity of sampling includes the type of material and corresponding
sampling techniques as well as the strategy. The latter one covers e.g. frequency of
sampling, number and quantity of samples. Since sampling is a complex issue a
thorough introduction to this field requires a very comprehensive discussion. Further
on, this book dominantly focuses on the laboratory work. Therefore, only a brief
summary of sampling aspects is given in the following.
2.1 Sampling Type and Techniques
All samples studied in Organic Geochemistry can be roughly classified either by
their origin (fossil matter, environmental samples) or their state of matter (solid,
liquid, gaseous). Noteworthy, gas analyses play a minor role in Organic Geochemistry and are not handled here.
There are some clear differences between the individual sample classes, but also
some overlaps. Differences are quite obvious e.g. between river water and river
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
J. Schwarzbauer, B. Jovančićević, Introduction to Analytical Methods in Organic
Geochemistry, Fundamentals in Organic Geochemistry,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-38592-7_2
5