What is ISO 13166 about?
ISO 13166 discusses water quality in terms of radioactive contamination. ISO 13166 is one of a family of International Standards on test methods dealing with the measurement of the activity concentration of radionuclides in water samples.
ISO 13166 specifies the conditions for the determination of uranium isotope activity concentration in samples of environmental water (including sea waters) using alpha-spectrometry and 232U as a yield tracer. Chemical separation is required to separate and purify uranium from a test portion of the sample.
Who is ISO 13166 for?
ISO 13166 on test method for uranium isotopes detection is useful for:
- Government/regulatory authorities
- Nuclear power plant officials
- Water supply departments
- Research laboratories
- Wastewater treatment plants
- Health and safety personnel
Why should you use ISO 13166?
Radioactivity from several naturally occurring and anthropogenic sources is present throughout the environment. Thus, water bodies (for example, surface waters, groundwaters, sea waters) can contain uranium isotopes of natural, human-made, or both origins. Uranium activity concentration in water bodies can vary according to local geological characteristics, and climatic conditions and can be locally and temporally enhanced by releases from nuclear installation during planned, existing and emergency exposure situations. Drinking water may thus contain uranium at activity concentrations which could risk human health.
The alpha-spectrometry test method described in ISO 13166 can be used during planned, existing and emergency exposure situations as well as for wastewaters and liquid effluents. Specific modifications will increase the overall uncertainty, detection limit, and threshold. ISO 13166 has been developed to help you carry out the measurements that are required by national authorities. ISO 13166 enables you to verify that, before their discharge, wastewaters/liquid effluent uranium activity concentrations do not exceed authorized limits.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS ISO 13166:2020 replaces the first edition (ISO 13166:2014), of which it constitutes a minor revision. The changes in BS ISO 13166:2020 compared to ISO 13166:2014 are as follows:
- Update of the common introduction
- Update of the text considering the new ISO 11929 series published in 2019