Sample error

{
  "id": "MLC-T-CHM-010495",
  "term": "Sample error",
  "field": "Chemistry",
  "definition": "An error in absorbance measurement that arises when the absorbance of a sample changes with time, for example through a photochemical reaction, the formation of aggregates or adsorption of the solute on the cell wall. It is separate from instrument errors and from the sampling error that comes from taking only part of a population. It shows up as an absorbance reading that drifts with time on repeated measurement of the same cell.",
  "subject": "Analytical Chemistry",
  "see_also": [
    "absorbance",
    "photochemical reaction"
  ],
  "references": [
    "PAC, 1988, 60, 1449. 'Nomenclature, symbols, units and their usage in spectrochemical analysis - VII. Molecular absorption spectroscopy, ultraviolet and visible (UV/VIS) (Recommendations 1988)' on page 1457 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac198860091449)"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/chemistry/sample-error/"
}