PubMed · 15613367
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Geoff Watts. 2004-12-21. Radon blues.. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.38315.668009.63
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Rainwater samples were collected and measured for the radioactivity to confirm the presence of Chlorine-39 (T1/2=56.2 min) formed by the interaction of cosmic-ray slow negative muons, mu- with Argon-40 in the lower atmosphere. The presence of 39Cl was confirmed by estimating the half-life of a radionuclide present in the rainwater ranging from 58 to 63 min and averaging 60.4 min. The disintegration rate of this radionuclide varied from 2.1 to 2.7 Bq L(-1) (125-160 dpm/L) of rainwater and averaged 2.3 Bq L(-1) (140 dpm/L) of rainwater in Thessaloniki (40 degrees 38'N, 22 degrees 58'E), Northern Greece. This concentration is indicative of mid or temperate latitudes. This is clearly less than that reported in the literature, 1.7 Bq L(-1) (100 dpm/L) of rainwater, for a southern latitude 31 degrees 54'N, 34 degrees 49'E (Rehovot, Israel), due to the latitudinal effect of cosmic radiation.
Located in the north-western part of Turkey, the province of Kastamonu has lately been receiving national attention because of its cultural and touristic attractions. This study assesses the environmental radioactivity levels of the region through measurements of indoor radon concentrations and indoor/outdoor gamma absorbed dose in air and radionuclide activities in surface soil and drinking water. The indoor (222)Rn activity concentration was found to be 98.4 Bq/m(3) equivalent to an annual effective dose of 2.48 mSv. The indoor and outdoor gamma absorbed doses were measured as 54.81 and 48.03 nGy/h, respectively, corresponding to a total gamma radiation level (of terrestrial and cosmic origin) of 0.33 mSv/y. The activity concentrations in the soil samples collected from the study area were determined as 32.93, 27.17, 431.43 Bq/kg for the natural radionuclides (238)U, (232)Th and (40)K, respectively, and 8.02 Bq/kg for the fission product (137)Cs. These natural radioactivity sources result in a terrestrial gamma level of 60 microSv/y. The water samples collected from the region carry an average of 0.0089 Bq/l of gross alpha and 0.271 Bq/l of gross beta activities which together cause an annual effective dose of 1.83 microSv. The measurement results obtained in this study indicate that the region has a background radiation level that is within the natural limits and shows no significant departure from the other parts of the country.
Analytical solutions of the dose rate integral for the Gaussian cloud approximation to the Gaussian plume were developed. A solution for the I1 integral for a ground-level source and for the I2 integral for an elevated source were given in terms of special functions. The I2 solution was also extended for the Berger buildup factor. These enable rapid computation of I1 and I2 to estimate the dose rate.