Glossary
Method reference
The identification, next to each test on a certificate, of the analytical method used: a pharmacopoeial general chapter, a monograph procedure, or the issuer's own numbered in-house method.
Why it matters on a certificate
A result is only comparable to a limit if it was produced by the method the limit belongs to. A certificate claiming a monograph but running unstated or in-house methods leaves the buyer unable to say what the numbers mean. Reviews check that each test names its method and that the named method is the one the claimed standard expects.
A worked example
A certificate lists "water content: 0.3%" with no method reference. Loss on drying and Karl Fischer titration can give different values for the same material, so without the method the result cannot be judged against a monograph limit.
Examples are synthetic and illustrative; any limits shown are not the requirements for any particular material.
The COA Validator checks the element this term describes on every certificate it reads, and reports what is present, what is missing and what does not add up.