Turbidity

Turbidity can be defined as the clarity or cloudiness of a liquid. Liquid samples can be comprised of many particles that can indicate the quality or properties of the sample.

Inside the turbidimeter, a light source sitting at a 90 degree angle shines into the liquid. The particles in the liquid scatter the light from the source, which results in a light scattering reading. This reading is then converted to a numerical measurement that is measured against five different calibrated sources. A higher number means there are a higher number of particles that scattered the light, and a lower number means a lower number of particles scattering the light.

Examples of this application include acceptable levels of particles in drinking water, or environmental water quality in nature. In other aspects of life, one only needs to look towards beer, wine, and spirits and appreciate effects of turbidity in the food and beverage industry. Turbidity is a very useful tool to determine clarity of your liquid sample, which may or may not in turn, affect the quality of your final product.

Typical Experimental Results

Applications

Instrument: AQ45400 Turbidimeter

Key Specs

ASTM Standards

ISO Standards