Qualifying criteria for alternative measurement procedures.

§ 1090.1365 Qualifying criteria for alternative measurement procedures.

This section specifies how to qualify alternative procedures for measuring absolute and method-defined fuel parameters under the Performance-based Analytical Test Method specified in § 1090.1360.

(a) The following general provisions apply for qualifying alternative procedures:

(1) Alternative procedures must have appropriate precision to allow for reporting to the number of decimal places specified in § 1090.1350(c).

(2) Testing to qualify an alternative procedure applies for the specified version of the procedure you use for making the necessary measurements. For referee procedures and for alternative procedures for method-defined fuel parameters that you have qualified for your laboratory, updated versions of those same procedures are qualified without further testing, as long as the specified reproducibility is the same as or better than the values specified in the earlier version. For absolute fuel parameters, updated versions are qualified without testing if both repeatability and reproducibility are the same as or better than the values specified in the earlier version.

(3) Except as specified in paragraph (d) of this section, testing to demonstrate compliance with the precision and accuracy specifications in this section apply only for the laboratory where the testing occurred.

(4) If a procedure for measuring benzene or sulfur in gasoline has no specified PLOQ and no specified scope with a lower bound, you must establish a LLOQ for your laboratory.

(5) Testing for method-defined fuel parameters must take place at a reference installation as specified in § 1090.1370.

(b) All alternative procedures must meet precision criteria based on a calculated maximum allowable standard deviation for a given fuel parameter as specified in this paragraph (b). The precision criteria apply for measuring the parameters and fuels specified in paragraph (b)(3) of this section. Take the following steps to qualify the measurement procedure for measuring a given fuel parameter:

(1) The fuel must meet the parameter specifications in Table 1 to paragraph (b)(3) of this section. This may require that you modify the fuel you typically produce to be within the specified range. Absent a specification (maximum or minimum), select a fuel representing values that are typical for your testing. Store and mix the fuel to maintain a homogenous mixture throughout the measurement period to ensure that each fuel sample drawn from the batch has the same properties.

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