Blank samples are taken to ensure that environmental samples have not been contaminated by the data-collection process. Any measured value/signal in a blank sample for an analyte (a specific component measured in a chemical analysis) that was absent in the blank solution is believed to be due to contamination. There are many possible types of blank samples, each designed to segregate a different part of the complete data-collection process including sampling, filtering, preserving, storing, transporting, and analysing.
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