The Safe Drinking Water Act sets stringent standards for the detection of radioactive contaminants in public water systems. A new study from the Wadsworth Center’s Nuclear Chemistry Laboratory explores how these requirements might be exceeded through improved analytical sensitivity.
Published in the Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, the study by Dr. Thomas Semkow (retired) and Dr. Adam Burn investigates methods to enhance the detection of low levels of uranium and plutonium in drinking water. The research applies advances in signal detection theory and novel statistical significance testing to radioanalytical measurements, yielding detection limits up to ten times lower than current regulatory thresholds.
By refining uncertainty propagation, data corrections, and analytical approximations, the authors demonstrated that required detection limits can be achieved with smaller sample volumes and shorter counting times—potentially reducing both sample processing and analysis durations. These improvements could streamline laboratory operations while maintaining the high standards of accuracy essential for protecting public health.
Semkow, TM, Burn, AG. Detection capability of environmental alpha spectrometry: II. Sensitivity. J Radioanal Nucl Chem (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-025-10398-3