Sample Submission

Important

  • DSC_0012
    Please contact us to discuss your needs before sending samples to our laboratory.
  • ALL overseas samples MUST be accompanied by a New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) permit MAF permit 2012.pdf (988.45 kB) to comply with importation regulations.

1. How to send samples
2. Documentation
3. Reporting Time
4. Conditions

1. How to send samples

Special bottles. All samples for CFCs and SF6 analysis must be collected in special bottles. Please contact us and we will send the bottles out to you.

Leak-proof. All liquid samples must be sent in resealable leak-proof screw topped bottles. It is preferable to ensure they are well packed in a protective box. Our laboratory staff check all samples closely on arrival for any evidence of leaking and will advise immediately. Please indicate if any samples are likely to be toxic or corrosive so appropriate precautions can be taken.

Courier or registered post. Courier despatch or registered post is preferred, and samples are acknowledged on receipt and assigned a Laboratory Order Number, a unique identifier of your samples. Couriers commonly used include DHL and Federal Express.

Label package. "Samples for Scientific Analysis - no commercial value".

2. Documentation

PDF Documents for Download:

Please complete our Sample Submission Form.pdf (27.63 kB)

Sample identification. All samples should be accompanied with sufficient documentation to identify each individual sample, identify the material and also give the full name and contact address of the submitter, with telephone and fax numbers and email address, if possible. Details of any prior treatment of the sample, such as cleaning, drying, treatment with solvents or preservatives should also be supplied.

MAF Import Permit. If the samples are being sent from overseas, please do not forget your MAF permit. Inclusion of the MAF Import Permit ( MAF permit 2012.pdf (988.45 kB) ) with the sample documentation and writing the permit number on the outside of the package is all that is required.

Send to:

Tritium and Water Dating Lab
GNS Science
1 Fairway Drive, Avalon
Lower Hutt, 5010
New Zealand

3. Reporting Time

Results are reported within three to four months of receipt of sample. Reporting time may be longer if large batches of samples are submitted or if the nature of the material is such that special processing methods are required. We may be able to process urgent samples sooner at a priority rate, subject to current laboratory workloads.

The laboratory will make the best possible effort to deliver correct results. However, since these techniques are on the very fringe of what is technically possible, GNS Science cannot assume any legal or other responsibility for erroneous results.

4. Conditions

A sample submission form must be received before work starts. Please contact us to discuss your needs before shipping samples so that their arrival can be expected.

Analysis will be carried out subject to GNS Science Terms and Conditions.

The laboratory equipment is designed only for extremely low-level tritium (<0.1TR) water samples and is, therefore, very vulnerable to samples with unexpectedly high tritium activity. Uncontaminated rainwater, sediments and groundwaters should be well below 30 TR.

The GNS Science Tritium and Water Dating Laboratory does not accept any high tritium samples (with expected activity above 1000 TR; 3 pCi mL-1). Such "hot" samples, originating from the vicinity of nuclear installations, could easily be measured in a commercial-type liquid scintillation system and should not be sent to us.

NOTE: The submitter of a "hot" sample must bear any and all costs for loss of analytical capability due to the carry-over of tritium from the submitter's samples to other samples and the laboratory in our operation.