Premium
Clearing Up the Confusion About Turbidity Measurement
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
opflow
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1551-8701
pISSN - 0149-8029
DOI - 10.1002/j.1551-8701.1983.tb00114.x
Subject(s) - turbidity , confusion , sample (material) , environmental science , turbidite , chemistry , chromatography , geology , geomorphology , psychology , psychoanalysis , oceanography , structural basin
Turbidity is defined as the characteristic or property of a liquid that causes it to scatter or absorb light. This article clarifies how turbidity is measured using turbidimeters. A turbidimeter detects the light through a sample and produces an electrical signal that is proportional to the turbidity of the sample. A turbidity measurement can be expressed in Jackson Turbidity Units (JTUs), Formazin Turbidity Units (FTUs), or Nephelometric Turbidity Units (NTUs). Both the JTU and the FTU express the amount of light that is transmitted through a sample. The NTU, however, expresses the amount of light that is scattered through a sample, not the amount of light that is transmitted. The USEPA drinking water regulations specify using nephelometric turbidimeters for all required monitoring.