| MatrixName | MatrixDescr |
| air | colorless, odorless, tasteless, gaseous mixture, mainly nitrogen (approximately 78 percent) and oxygen (approximately 21 percent) with lesser amounts of argon, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, neon, helium, and other gases |
| benthic | Flora and fauna collected from the bottom of a waterbody |
| blankmatrix | matrix free of interferences (e.g, in reagent water, clean sand, or another suitable reference matrix) that is commercially or Lab-produced used for tissue and sediment QA samples |
| blankwater | Matrix free of interferences used for water QC samples, including toxicity test controls. Includes all types of reagent water that are commercially or lab-processed. |
| blankwater_modified | For use with CNSL toxicity test sample types. Matrix free of interferences (reagent water) that is commercially or Lab-processed used for water QA sample, modified to reflect the salinity or conductivity of a particular sample. |
| effluent | Wastewater--treated or untreated--that flows out of a treatment plant, sewer, or industrial outfall |
| Extract_AlgalMat | Algal mat sample digested/extracted by laboratory procedure |
| Extract_Samplewater | Samplewater extracted from sorbent media or solid phase extraction |
| groundwater | The supply of fresh water found beneath the Earth's surface, usually in aquifers, which supply wells and springs |
| habitat | habitat at the location |
| Not Applicable | not applicable |
| overlyingwater | the water above the sediment surface within a test container, used for toxicity |
| PBSwater | Phosphate buffered saline |
| PCRmatrix | Used for QC samples in PCR analyses. PCR reagents without the addition of sample DNA or a positive standard. May contain PCR Extraction Blank. |
| recycledwater | Water which, as a result of treatment of waste, is suitable for a direct beneficial use or a controlled use that would not otherwise occur and is therefore considered a valuable resource (WC§13050n). |
| referencetoxicant | metal or chlorinated organic used to evaluate the health and sensitivity of test organisms over time and assessing laboratory performance |
| runoff | That part of precipitation, snow melt, or irrigation water that runs off the land into streams or other surface-water. Water sampled prior to mixing with ambient surface water. |
| samplewater | Ambient surface water collected in the field |
| samplewater, <1.2 um | Samplewater filtered through <1.2 um |
| samplewater, <125 um | Samplewater filtered through <125 um |
| samplewater, <200 um | Samplewater filtered through <200 um |
| samplewater, <35 um | Samplewater filtered through <35 um |
| samplewater, <5 um | Samplewater filtered through <5 um |
| samplewater, particulate, <177 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through <177 um |
| samplewater, particulate, <63 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through <63 um |
| samplewater, particulate, >200 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through >200 um |
| samplewater, particulate, 1.2 to <5 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through 1.2 to <5 um |
| samplewater, particulate, 125 to <200 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through 125 to <200 um |
| samplewater, particulate, 35 to <125 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through 35 to <125 um |
| samplewater, particulate, 5 to <35 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through 5 to <35 um |
| samplewater, particulate, 63 um to 2000 um | Particulate from samplewater filtered through 63 um to 2000 um |
| sediment | Loose particles of sand, clay, silt, and other substances that settle at the bottom of a water body |
| sediment, <63 um | Sediment sample sieved through <63 um |
| sediment, 63 to 2000 um | Sediment sample sieved through 63 to 2000 um |
| sediment, elutriate | Sediment, elutriate - Non-contaminated water mixed with sediment and allowed to settle prior to analysis of the water portion |
| sediment, interstitialwater | water occupying the spaces between sediment particles- same as pore water - may or may not be centrifuged |
| SEM-Extract | Extract derived from the Simultaneously Extracted Metals procedure, analyzed for individual metal concentrations. |
| stormwater | Effluent from point source discharges from municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), industrial facilities, and construction sites regulated under NPDES permits. Water sampled prior to mixing with ambient surface water. Applies to wet and dry weather |
| tapwater | Unprocessed laboratory tap water used for field QC samples that has been tested to ensure no contamination of target analytes |
| tissue | Part of an organism consisting of an aggregate of cells having similar function; muscle, nerve epidermal or connective |