THE INTERPRETATION OF CEC L-33-T-82 BIODEGRADABILITY TEST DATA

The CEC L-33-T-82 biodegradability test has become a de facto standard industry method for assessing the biodegradabilities of oil products and is stipulated in national legislation (Portugal), an ICOMIA international standard and labelling schemes for environmentally-compatible lubricants. In this paper we report data which indicate that the CEC test should be looked upon as a method for assessing ''primary'' biodegradation, as defined by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (i.e. ''the alteration in the chemical structure of a substance, brought about by biological action, resulting in the loss of a specific property of that substance'') .