Heavy metal sulfides found in nature are partially oxidized by weather conditions and dissolve in water to form sulphates. Most of the sulphates are dissolved from the rocks. Sulphate ion is an ion that is present in natural waters and whose concentration varies from a few milligrams to several thousand milligrams per liter. The main sources of sulfate in groundwater are gypsum and anhydrite. These substances are highly soluble in water. For this reason, the biggest source of sulfate in water is jeep. Sulphates in waters are formed by filtration from gypsum and other salts or from domestic and industrial wastes. Lead, barium, strontium and calcium sulphates in water do not dissolve, but sodium, potassium and ammonium sulphates are highly soluble.

Sulfate in water can generally be in high concentrations. High sulphate concentration in water leads to corrosion of metals in the distribution systems.

Gravimetric and turbidimetric methods are the most commonly used methods for determination of sulphate in laboratories. All gravimetric methods are based on the separation of the substance sought from the test sample in the form of an element or as a pure compound. The separation is generally in the form of a difficult-to-dissolve precipitate. Determination of sulphate by gravimetric method is based on precipitation and weighing of sulphate ion in barium sulfate solution with barium chloride solution in weak acid medium.

The turbidimetric analysis method is based on the light absurdity of a turbid solution containing colloidal particles. There is a relationship between the turbidity of the solution and the concentration of the substance causing this turbidity. The sulfate ion in water forms barium sulfate crystals under acidic conditions by the addition of barium ions to the water. The more sulfate ions in water, the more turbidity occurs after the addition of barium ions.

Sulfate determination studies are carried out in authorized laboratories within the scope of chemical analyzes. These studies comply with the standards published by national and international organizations.