Temporal Variation of Soil Gas Radon Associated with Seismic Activity: A Case Study in NW Greece

Eight soil gas measurements were performed in the Liupanshan fault zone (LPSFZ) to observe the concentration and flux of soil gas radon (Rn) and CO2 in October 2017 and October 2018. By combining the historical strong earthquake background and modern seismic activity of the fault zone, the relation between the geochemical distribution characteristics of soil gas and the seismicity of the fault zone was studied herein. Furthermore, the strong seismic hazard potential of the fault zone was discussed. Results show that the concentration of soil gas Rn and CO2 considerably varies in the northern segment of the LPSFZ and is relatively stable in the southern segment. The spatial distribution of the concentration intensity and flux is strong in the north and weak in the south. However, the southern segment of the LPSFZ has a seismic gap that has not been ruptured by strong earthquakes with Ms ≥ 6.5 for the last 1400 years, whereas the seismic activity in the northern segment is relatively frequent, indicating that the fault zone locking degree of the southern segment is higher than that of the northern segment. This observation is completely consistent with the geochemical characteristic distribution of soil gas. Therefore, the southern segment of the LPSFZ should be considered a hazardous segment, where major or strong earthquakes can occur in the future.

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Radon Concentration in Groundwater and Soil Gas Radon in Agbabu Bituminous Deposit Area: Mapping, GR Potential and Health Risks Assessments

Iranian Journal of Science and Technology Transactions A Science ◽

10.1007/s40995-021-01094-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

E. B. Faweya ◽

T. Adewumi ◽

Y. Ajiboye ◽

H. T. Akande ◽

H. A. Rasheed

Keyword(s):

Health Risks ◽

Radon Concentration ◽

Soil Gas ◽

Soil Gas Radon

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Radiological Assessment of Indoor Radon and Thoron Concentrations and Indoor Radon Map of Dwellings in Mashhad, Iran

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18010141 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 141

Author(s):

Mohammademad Adelikhah ◽

Amin Shahrokhi ◽

Morteza Imani ◽

Stanislaw Chalupnik ◽

Tibor Kovács

Keyword(s):

Limit Of Detection ◽

Indoor Radon ◽

Absolute Error ◽

Soil Gas ◽

Indoor Radon Concentration ◽

Soil Gas Radon ◽

Distance Weighting ◽

The City ◽

Monitoring Devices ◽

Radon Concentrations

A comprehensive study was carried out to measure indoor radon/thoron concentrations in 78 dwellings and soil-gas radon in the city of Mashhad, Iran during two seasons, using two common radon monitoring devices (NRPB and RADUET). In the winter, indoor radon concentrations measured between 75 ± 11 to 376 ± 24 Bq·m−3 (mean: 150 ± 19 Bq m−3), whereas indoor thoron concentrations ranged from below the Lower Limit of Detection (LLD) to 166 ± 10 Bq·m−3 (mean: 66 ± 8 Bq m−3), while radon and thoron concentrations in summer fell between 50 ± 11 and 305 ± 24 Bq·m−3 (mean 115 ± 18 Bq m−3) and from below the LLD to 122 ± 10 Bq m−3 (mean 48 ± 6 Bq·m−3), respectively. The annual average effective dose was estimated to be 3.7 ± 0.5 mSv yr−1. The soil-gas radon concentrations fell within the range from 1.07 ± 0.28 to 8.02 ± 0.65 kBq·m−3 (mean 3.07 ± 1.09 kBq·m−3). Finally, indoor radon maps were generated by ArcGIS software over a grid of 1 × 1 km2 using three different interpolation techniques. In grid cells where no data was observed, the arithmetic mean was used to predict a mean indoor radon concentration. Accordingly, inverse distance weighting (IDW) was proven to be more suitable for predicting mean indoor radon concentrations due to the lower mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE). Meanwhile, the radiation health risk due to the residential exposure to radon and indoor gamma radiation exposure was also assessed.

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