Transfer of natural radionuclides from soil to plants in Savar Dhaka

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Haque ◽  
J. Ferdous

The radioactivity of environmental samples from nuclear reactor sites must be analyzed before the public is given free access to the plants grown in these soils. Plant and corresponding soil samples were collected from a sample site around the Savar research reactor near Dhaka (Bangladesh) and the activity concentrations of natural radionuclides <sup>226</sup>Ra (<sup>238</sup>U-chain), <sup>228</sup>Ra (<sup>232</sup>Th-chain) and non-chained <sup>40</sup>K were measured using gamma ray spectrometry. Soils of Savar contained more radioactive <sup>40</sup>K than <sup>226</sup>Ra and <sup>228</sup>Ra. The influence of certain soil properties on the activity concentrations and transfer factors (TF) of natural radionuclides were investigated by correlating the observed data with those of soil properties. The activity concentrations of <sup>40</sup>K were much higher than those of <sup>226</sup>Ra and <sup>228</sup>Ra in plants due to higher uptake from soils. The transfer factors for <sup>226</sup>Ra, <sup>228</sup>Ra and <sup>40</sup>K were found to range from 0.04 to 0.10, 0.12 to 0.32, and 0.24 to 0.72, respectively. The soil to plant transfer factors for <sup>40</sup>K was found to be much higher in plants, which might be due to this element being vital in plants. This study showed that activity concentrations of these radionuclides in plants and their plant transfer factors seem to depend on the activity concentrations of the same radionuclides in soil.</p><p><strong> </strong>

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eyakifama Hazou ◽  
Benjamin Zorko ◽  
Milohum Mikesokpo Dzagli ◽  
Essolakina Manakrihèa Haliba ◽  
Cebastien Joel Guembou Shouop ◽  
...  

Abstract Natural radionuclides activity concentrations of 226Ra, 228Ra, and 40K in soil and grass samples, statistical analysis of these radionuclides and transfer factors (TFs) from soil to the grass were carried out from phosphate mining and processing sites in southern areas of Togo using gamma-ray spectrometry-based High Purity Germanium (HPGe) detector. The average activity concentrations of 226Ra, 228Ra, and 40K were found within the range usually measured worldwide. Statistical analysis was done by investigating the skewness, the kurtosis, and the density distribution of radionuclides in the study areas. Both skewness and kurtosis displayed that the activity concentrations of soil and grass samples in the dischargement waste site (Kpémé) and mining site (Hahotoé) exhibited slightly positively skewed, negatively skewed, leptokurtic, and platykurtic distributions. The TFs for 226Ra, 228Ra, and 40K from dischargement waste soil to grass were evaluated. The average transfer factors of 226Ra, 228Ra, and 40K in the phosphate processing area were found to be 0.16, 0.32, and 8.42, respectively. 226Ra and 228Ra TFs values were found to within the limit of worldwide measure values while that of 40K was to be larger than the values measured in other countries. The average TF value of 8.42 for 40K was 8 times higher than the average value of unity, showing its large intake by vegetables. The high TFs for 40K could be explained by the extensive application of phosphate fertilizers to soils when growing vegetables.


Author(s):  
I. Hossain ◽  
N. M. Yussuf ◽  
M. A. Saeed ◽  
M. O. Alzanbaqi ◽  
H. Wagiran

This paper has explained the contamination of natural radionuclides in various water testers using gamma ray measurement which is very significant as part of health scrutiny programs to progress the ecological knowledge. Natural radioactivity was determined in five groups of water samples (rain, mine, tap, drinking and mineral) from different places at Johor, Malaysia by means of gamma-ray spectrometry tool. The annual cumulative effective doses were estimated 6.05 mSv /yr for rain, 9.49 mSv/ yr for mine, 6.39 mSv /yr for tap, 5.67 mSv /yr for drinking, and 6.01 mSv/yr for mineral water. Among the five samples, mine water gave the highest value in annual effective dose measurement. The measured data are compared with the reported value. The activity concentrations of five water samples provided that bottled drinking water was the lowest than other water samples. This research is useful to provide some information to the public about the amount of radionuclide content uranium, thorium and potassium that present in water.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 121
Author(s):  
Filothei K. Pappa ◽  
Christos Tsabaris ◽  
Dionisis Patiris ◽  
Georgios Eleftheriou ◽  
Effrossini G. Androulakaki ◽  
...  

Radionuclides are characterized by their nuclear and chemical behavior. Additionally, the geochemical characteristics of radionuclides result in their accumulation in the sediments via sorption processes. In this work the radionuclide activity concentrations obtained by gamma-ray spectrometry (HPGe detector) were converted to metal concentrations as described in [1]. The results were compared with the measured metal concentrations obtained by atomic spectrometry (X-ray fluorescence system-XRF). The samples originate from the coastal environment of two Greek areas, characterized by elevated values of natural radionuclides (e.g. 226Ra) and metals. The preliminary study revealed a good agreement among the concentrations of potassium calculated via activity concentrations of 40K and those of XRF measurement, while a great divergence was observed for the thorium case. These differences can be attributed to the low statistics, as well as to the calibration set-up of Th XRF measurement.


2019 ◽  
Vol 184 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 397-399
Author(s):  
R Kritsananuwat ◽  
C Kranrod ◽  
S Chanyotha ◽  
T Ploykrathok ◽  
P Sriploy

Abstract Thailand is predominantly an agricultural country. The Northern Region occupies the second largest cultivated land area in the country. To establish baseline data for future environmental monitoring, seventy-nine plant samples including vegetables, fruits and tobaccos and their relevant soils were collected from the major plantation zones of Northern Thailand. Activity concentrations of natural radionuclides in the samples were determined using gamma-ray spectrometry technique. The median activity concentrations of 226Ra and 228Ra in the soil samples were higher than worldwide value, while as those of 40K were comparable with worldwide value. There was a large variation and non-uniform distribution in the soil samples. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 228Ra and 40K in the plant samples varied widely within plants and between species and were very low compared to their relevant soils. A decreasing trend of their activity concentration has been observed in the order leaf > stem > rhizome/root (as found in galangal); and leaf > stalk/stem (as found in lemongrass).


Atmosphere ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 98
Author(s):  
Randa Osman ◽  
Yehia H. Dawood ◽  
Ahmed Melegy ◽  
Mohamed S. El-Bady ◽  
Ahmed Saleh ◽  
...  

Due to heightening concern about radiation hazards protection, activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K in forty soil samples collected from Shoubra El Kheima in the South Nile Delta were measured using gamma-ray spectrometry. The mean activity concentrations of 226Ra and 40K were higher in 20% of the considered samples than the world average values. A comprehensive comparison with up-to-date data was carried out. Spatial distribution maps of the measured radionuclides and radiological parameters were generated. The distributions of natural radionuclides were influenced by the soil organic matter, clay content, and scavenger metals oxides, as well as differences in the physical and chemical attributes and solubility of these radionuclides. The results revealed that industrial activity and agricultural practices in the study area caused an incremental increase in 226Ra and 40K activity concentrations. It can be deduced that although there are intensive industrial activities in this area, the natural radiation that comes from the soil is normal and does not pose a significant radiological hazard to the public. The natural radioactivity of soil in this area needs to be monitored periodically to prevent unnecessary radiation exposure to inhabitants.


2019 ◽  
Vol 188 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-55
Author(s):  
Abdul Majeed Muidh Al Mutairi ◽  
Norlaili A Kabir

Abstract Tapioca and sweet potato are the fourth and fifth most consumed crops in Malaysia. The activity concentrations of natural radionuclides in these vegetables were assessed from two regions in Malaysia (Kedah and Penang) along with soil samples using gamma ray spectroscopy. The transfer factors of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K from soil to vegetables were calculated, and a dose assessment was performed. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in soil samples did not show a significant variation with the regions investigated, and the average values obtained, in Bq/kg, (±SD) were as follows: 80 ± 41, 56 ± 12, 516 ± 119, respectively. The respective average activity concentrations in vegetables were as follows, in Bq/kg: (±SD) 2.0 ± 0.5, 6 ± 2, 153 ± 49. The corresponding transfer factors were calculated to be 0.03, 0.11 and 0.31 for 226Ra, 232Th and 40K, respectively. The average annual effective doses due to the exposure from soil and ingestion of vegetables were found to lie within the worldwide ranges.


2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 48-57
Author(s):  
K. Beňová ◽  
I. Gašpareková ◽  
P. Dvořák ◽  
A. Havelková

Abstract The aim of this study was to determine the activity of post-Chernobyl 137Cs in Slovak bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) from selected locations of Slovakia depending upon: the season, location and the soil-plant transfer factor (TF). The 137Cs activity was determined in samples of forest soil and bilberry bushes (stems, leaves and fruits) growing on the soil in three locations: Arboretum Mlyňany (1), Hodruša-Hámre (2) and Javorníky (3). Altogether we collected 35 samples; namely 15 samples from Arboretum Mlyňany, 10 samples from Hodruša-Hámre and 10 from Javorníky. The samples of soil were examined also for the activity of 40K. The samples were collected in the spring, summer and autumn in the years 2019 and 2020 and were analysed by a gamma-ray spectrometry method. The highest levels of 137Cs activity concentrations were determined in Hodruša-Hámre in September where they reached 161 ± 13 Bq.kg−1 in the soil, 3.95 ± 1.07 Bq.kg−1 in the stems and 14.7 ± 4.26 Bq.kg−1 in the leaves. The lowest levels were determined in the Arboretum Mlyňany in October where the 137Cs activity in the soil reached 13.1 ± 1 15 Bq.kg−1, while in the stems, leaves and fruits it was lower than the minimum detectable level. In the latter location, we also determined the highest activity of 40K, the radioactive isotope physiologically and metabolically similar to 137Cs. The mass activity of 137Cs in all samples of bilberries were lower than the minimum detectable activity (MDA). The comparison of the results obtained in this study with the limit for total mass activity of radiocaesium (134Cs + 137Cs) in the food (600 Bq.kg−1) allowed us to conclude that the fruits, stems and leaves of Slovak bil-berries present neither health nor environmental risk.


2021 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 659-672
Author(s):  
Sk. A. K. Arafin ◽  
Md. Sapan Bhuiyan ◽  
Jannatul Ferdous ◽  
M. Ashraful Hoque ◽  
A. K. M. Rezaur Rahman ◽  
...  

The study aimed to investigate natural radioactivity levels and Transfer Factors of natural radionuclides from soil to some plants in Chittagong, Bangladesh. The concentrations of naturally occurring and anthropogenic radionuclides in soil and plants were measured in this work to determine the absorbed dose rate and the transfer factors of radionuclides from soil to plant. Plants (Spinach and Vegetables) and corresponding soil samples were collected from three different locations in Chittagong (Nasirabad, Sitakunda, and Halda Agrotechnology), and the concentrations of activity of natural radionuclides were measured using gamma-ray spectrometry. The average absorbed dose rate in the soil of Nasirabad, Sitakunda, and Halda Agrotechnology are 49.84 nGyh-1, 37.4 nGyh-1, and 45.6 nGyh-1. The average transfer factor from soil to plants, recorded for 238U, 232Th, and 40K of these study areas, are 0.461, 0.400, and 3.10, respectively. The ratio of soil to plant transfer factor for the present study compared with some previous work. The Transfer Factor of 40K gives some high value but does not exceed the limit of the different published values. Because there are no existing databases for the natural radioactivity in soil and plants from Chittagong, Bangladesh, our results are establishing a database for the Chittagong, Bangladesh soil and plants. This data may be used as a database for further investigation for the betterment of public health.


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