Radon activity concentrations and effective doses in ancient Egyptian tombs of the Valley of the Kings

2001 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 355-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.F Hafez ◽  
A.S Hussein
2016 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 422-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masahiro Hosoda ◽  
Shinji Tokonami ◽  
Yasutaka Omori ◽  
Tetsuo Ishikawa ◽  
Kazuki Iwaoka

Abstract Due to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) accident, the evacuees from Namie Town still cannot reside in the town, and some continue to live in temporary housing units. In this study, the radon activity concentrations were measured at temporary housing facilities, apartments and detached houses in Fukushima Prefecture in order to estimate the annual internal exposure dose of residents. A passive radon–thoron monitor (using a CR-39) and a pulse-type ionization chamber were used to evaluate the radon activity concentration. The average radon activity concentrations at temporary housing units, including a medical clinic, apartments and detached houses, were 5, 7 and 9 Bq m −3 , respectively. Assuming the residents lived in these facilities for one year, the average annual effective doses due to indoor radon in each housing type were evaluated as 0.18, 0.22 and 0.29 mSv, respectively. The average effective doses to all residents in Fukushima Prefecture due to natural and artificial sources were estimated using the results of the indoor radon measurements and published data. The average effective dose due to natural sources for the evacuees from Namie Town was estimated to be 1.9 mSv. In comparison, for the first year after the FDNPP accident, the average effective dose for the evacuees due to artificial sources from the accident was 5.0 mSv. Although residents' internal and external exposures due to natural radionuclides cannot be avoided, it might be possible to lower external exposure due to the artificial radionuclides by changing some behaviors of residents.


Author(s):  
Anas M Ababneh ◽  
Qutad M Samarah

Abstract It is inevitable that we are exposed to radiation daily from various sources and products that we consume on daily basis. The use of toothpaste for oral hygiene is one of the most common daily practices by humans and yet very little data are available regarding its radiation content. In this work, we investigated the concentrations of gamma emitting radionuclides in toothpaste samples consumed in Jordan. 40K and 226Ra were detected in almost one-third of the samples, whereas 228Ra was detected in nearly half of them. The corresponding activity concentrations in the detected samples were in the ranges of 68.7–154.2, 4.6–14.1 and 1.3–10.0 Bq/kg, respectively. Dose assessment of accidental ingestion of toothpaste for children and adults was made, and its contribution to the annual effective dose was found to be very minimal with maximum doses of ~2.9 and 1.3 μSv for children and adults, respectively.


2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-93
Author(s):  
O O ALATISE ◽  
Y S AKINSANYA

In this work, the presence of natural radioactivity in bottled waters from parts of south-west Nigeria was investigated. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in the water samples were ob-tained using a high-purity germanium detector. The ranges of activity concentrations obtained for 232Th, 226Ra and 40K were 0.15 to 1.25Bq l-1, 0.02 to 2.94Bq l-1 and 6.96 to 46.47 Bq l-1, respectively. 40K has the highest activity concentration in the bottled water samples while 232Th has the least value. The activity concentrations obtained together with ingested dose conversion factors, were used to calculate the annual effective doses for six age groups ranging from < 1 to >17 years. The calculated total annual effective doses (mSvy-1) ranged from 0.01 to 4.16 and the values are age dependent (highest for < 1year and lowest for 7-12years age groups). The results showed that the average annu-al effective dose for 35% of the bottled water brands were below the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended level of 0.1 mSvy-1 for drinking water. Furthermore, out of the remaining 65% that were higher than the WHO recommended level, 9% were higher than 1 mSvy-1, which is the radia-tion exposure limit for the general public according to the recommendation of the International Com-mission on Radiological Protection. Consequently, consumption of some of the bottled water brands investigated in this study could constitute radiological hazard especially for the < 1 and 12-17years age groups.


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 339-346
Author(s):  
Mehmet Erdogan ◽  
Murat Abaka ◽  
Kaan Manisa ◽  
Hasan Bircan ◽  
Coskun Kus ◽  
...  

Indoor radon activity concentrations and radon doses on the ground floor and basement floor of 19 schools (kindergardens, primary schools, secondary schools, and high schools) and thermal spas of Ilgin district in Konya, have been measured using the AlphaGUARD PQ 2000PRO radon detector, for three days in the first half of 2016. According to the results, while the indoor radon concentration for only one location, in total, is above the Turkish action level of 400 Bqm?3, the values for 10 locations are above the reference level of 100 Bqm?3, recommended by WHO. The calculated annual effective doses for inhalation of the radon in indoor air were also found to be 0.26 ?Sv for the minimum and 4.36 ?Sv for the maximum. The parametric distribution analysis is also performed with 3-parameter Weibull distribution and some remarks are provided on radon concentration activity.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marusia Rentería-Villalobos ◽  
Manuel Reyes Cortés ◽  
Juan Mantero ◽  
Guillermo Manjón ◽  
Rafael García-Tenorio ◽  
...  

The main interest of this study is to assess whether uranium deposits located in the San Marcos outcrops (NW of Chihuahua City, Mexico) could be considered as a source of U-isotopes in its surrounding environment. Uranium activity concentrations were determined in biota, ground, and surface water by either alpha or liquid scintillation spectrometries. Major ions were analyzed by ICP-OES in surface water and its suspended matter. For determining uranium activity in biota, samples were divided in parts. The results have shown a possible lixiviation and infiltration of uranium from geological substrate into the ground and surface water, and consequently, a transfer to biota. Calculated annual effective doses by ingestion suggest that U-isotopes in biota could not negligibly contribute to the neighboring population dose. By all these considerations, it is concluded that in this zone there is natural enhancement of uranium in all environmental samples analyzed in the present work.


Nukleonika ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 193-198
Author(s):  
Zdenko Franić ◽  
Gina Branica ◽  
Branko Petrinec ◽  
Gordana Marović

AbstractThis paper presents the results of long-term investigations of 137Cs and 134Cs activity concentrations in drinking water in the city of Zagreb for the period 1987–2018. The highest activity concentrations of both radio-nuclides were measured in 1987, decreasing exponentially ever since, while 134Cs in several subsequent years fell under the detection limit. After the Fukushima Daiichi accident in 2011, the presence of 134Cs in drinking water was detected again. The environmental residence time for 137Cs was estimated to be 8.1 years in drinking water and 5.7 years in fallout. The correlation between 137Cs in fallout and in drinking water is very good, and this indicates that fallout is the main source of water contamination. The observed 134Cs/137Cs activity ratio in drinking water for the post-Chernobyl period was similar to the ratio found in other environmental samples. The estimation of annual effective doses received by the adult members of the Croatian population due to the intake of radiocaesium in drinking water showed quite small doses of 0.28 μSv in 1987 decreasing to 2.5 nSv in 2018, which indicated that drinking water was not a critical pathway for the transfer of radiocaesium to humans.


2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 166-173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tayseer Al-Naggar ◽  
Ayman Abdalla

In this work, the radon exhalation rate, effective radium content and radiation doses from some groundwater wells in Najran City, Saudi Arabia, were addressed and discussed in detail. This survey of radon concentrations in the groundwater was carried out using the passive measurement technique, where the radon gas passively diffuses into the detector. The obtained results revealed that the radon exhalation rate in terms of area and mass exhibits linear correlations with effective radium in groundwater (correlation coefficient R2 = 1). Also, the majority of radon concentrations are within the UNSCEAR 1993 permitted level and the average annual effective doses obtained for radium and radon are 180 ?Sv and 860 ?Sv, respectively.


Author(s):  

Despite development of central water supply systems, springs still remain to be important sources of drinking water. In this work, the study of water quality in springs of Yekaterinburg city and its settlements was performed with the attention to radiological factor. Activity concentrations of radium-226 were determined in water of 20 springs. Methods. Determination of the radon-222 activities of was performed using gamma-spectrometry vis the equilibrium bismuth-214 gamma line. To determine radium-226, 5-liter water samples were taken, the radium was preconcentrated on a T-5 sorbent; then radium was separated on a thinlayer MnO2-PE sorbent followed by measurement on an alpha spectrometer. Results. In the vast majority of cases, activity concentrations of radium-226 were lower than the detection limit (0.3 Bq/L); the maximal activity concentration of 1.03 ± 0.27 was found that corresponded to the internal dose of 0.21 ± 0.05 μSv/y due to daily consumption of this water. No correlations were found between content of radium-226 and concentrations of radon-222, uranium-238 and alkaline earth ions. At the period of 09.2020 – 06.2021, monitoring of radon activity was performed in seven springs with previously found high radon content. Significant seasonal variations of radon activity were found; for some springs the difference between the minimal and the maximal activity reached 3. In the most cases, increase of radon activity occurred in water during winter that can be explained by both an increase of radon solubility in cold water and a decrease of flowrate.


2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 567-575
Author(s):  
H. A. Abdel Ghany ◽  
A. El-Shershaby ◽  
A. Sroor ◽  
M. Abdel-Samei

This work presents the results of the absorbed dose rates and estimated effective doses of the surface soils samples collected from different factories in the industrial region of Suez City, Egypt using high resolution gamma spectrometry system (HpGe) detector. The average activity concentrations of 226Ra, 238U, 232Th and 40K in fertilizer factories were: 74.54 ± 3.7, 26.54 ± 1.3, 14.68 ± 0.73 and 233 ± 11.68 Bq kg−1, respectively, in Ceramic factories were: 75.91 ± 3.7, 31.35 ± 1.56, 20.34 ± 1.01 and 255 ± 12.76 Bq kg−1, respectively, in textile factories were: 121 ± 6.07, 36.22 ± 1.81, 25.80 ± 1.29 and 1076 ± 53.83 Bq kg−1, respectively, in oil factories were: 76.24 ± 3.81, 25.90 ± 1.29, 15.26 ± 0.7 and 266 ± 13.31 Bq kg−1, respectively, and in steel factory were: 79.72 ± 3.98, 35.22 ± 1.76, 11.95 ± 0.59 and 163 ± 8.16 Bq kg−1, respectively. The calculated absorbed dose rates in factories were: 31.13 ± 1.55, 37.86 ± 1.89, 79.04 ± 3.95, 32.64 ± 1.63 and 29.99 ± 1.49 nGy h−1, respectively. Also, the annual effective dose in the above factories were: 0.03 ± 0.001, 0.04 ± 0.002, 0.09 ± 0.004, 0.03 ± 0.001 and 0.036 ± 0.001 mSv y−1, respectively. Also, the exposure of workers to radon was studied using solid state nuclear track detectors (CR-39). The results indicate that feeding materials variably affect the radioactivity measurements of the surface soil in different factories.


PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Makiko Orita ◽  
Yuko Kimura ◽  
Yasuyuki Taira ◽  
Toshiki Fukuda ◽  
Jumpei Takahashi ◽  
...  

Mushrooms are recognized as one of the main contributors to internal radiation exposure from the activity concentration of radiocesium released by the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (CNNP). We evaluated the activity concentrations of the artificial radionuclides (radiocesium) in wild mushrooms collected in 2015 from Korosten and Lugine, Zhitomir region, Ukraine, located 120 km away from the CNPP. Cesium-137 was detected in 110 of 127 mushroom samples (86.6%). Based on the average mushroom consumption (5 kg per year), we calculated committed effective doses ranging from 0.001–0.12 mSv. Cesium-137 remains in the wild mushrooms even 30 years after the accident, but the committed effective doses are limited by the amount of contaminated mushrooms consumed. However, evaluation of internal radiation exposure and assessment of environmental radioactivity in the surrounding area affected by the nuclear accident are still necessary in order to relieve anxiety about internal radiation exposure, as long as the possibility of consumption of contaminated mushrooms remains.


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