Environmental Tritium Laboratory

The Environmental Tritium Laboratory of the CDTN, which belongs to the Environmental Service – SEMAM, is designed to determine extremely low (ultra-trace) concentrations of tritium in environmental water samples. Tritium levels are used to measure the renewal time of aquifers, as well as to assess the infiltration rate of water into the soil, using tritium as a tracer. Due to the low concentrations of tritium in the samples, the preparation process involves steps such as: preliminary distillation, electrolytic enrichment and secondary distillation for the detection of beta emissions of tritium by liquid scintillation spectrometry. The laboratory meets the demands of internal and external clients of the CDTN, participating in research in the areas of hydrology and water resources. The CDTN has been conducting research on tritium since 1968, and the Environmental Tritium Laboratory is one of the few in Latin America capable of measuring tritium concentrations at ultra-trace levels.

Technical manager:

Eliana A. Nonato Knupp - ean@cdtn.br - labtritiocdtn@cdtn.br - Tel.: +55 31 34399737