What is a 48-hour rapid gross alpha test?
The 48-hour rapid gross alpha test identifies the presence of gross alpha particle activity in your well water. Alpha particles are emitted during the decay of certain radioactive substances. Gross Alpha particle activity includes radium, uranium and thorium, but most of the gross alpha radioactivity found in drinking water is from radium. New Jersey has adopted a protocol that requires the analysis of a gross alpha sample with 48 hours of sample collection. The 48-hour rapid gross alpha test includes the gross alpha particle activity captured from radium-224, an isotope with a half-life of 3.64 days, which is not captured using the standard USEPA method.
A13: The 48-hour rapid gross alpha test identifies the presence of gross alpha particle activity in your well water. Alpha particles are emitted during the decay of certain radioactive substances. Gross Alpha particle activity includes radium, uranium and thorium, but most of the gross alpha radioactivity found in drinking water is from radium. New Jersey has adopted a protocol that requires the analysis of a gross alpha sample with 48 hours of sample collection. The 48-hour rapid gross alpha test includes the gross alpha particle activity captured from radium-224, an isotope with a half-life of 3.64 days, which is not captured using the standard USEPA method.
