ISO 17294-2:2003 specifies a method for the determination of the elements aluminium, antimony, arsenic, barium, beryllium, bismuth, boron, cadmium, caesium, calcium, cerium, chromium, cobalt, copper, dysprosium, erbium, europium, gadolinium, gallium, germanium, gold, hafnium, holmium, indium, iridium, lanthanum, lead, lithium, lutetium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel, palladium, phosphorus, platinum, potassium, praseodymium, rubidium, rhenium, rhodium, ruthenium, samarium, scandium, selenium, silver, sodium, strontium, terbium, tellurium, thorium, thallium, thulium, tin, tungsten, uranium, vanadium, yttrium, ytterbium, zinc, and zirconium in water (for example drinking water, surface water, groundwater, wastewater and eluates).

Taking into account the specific and additionally occurring interferences, these elements can also be determined in digests of water, sludges and sediments.

The working range depends on the matrix and the interferences encountered. In drinking water and relatively unpolluted waters, the limit of application is between 0,1 micrograms per litre and 1,0 micrograms per litre for most elements.

The detection limits of most elements are affected by blank contamination and depend predominantly on the laboratory air-handling facilities available.

The lower limit of application is higher in cases where the determination is likely to suffer from interferences or in case of memory effects.