Characteristics of thoron and thoron progeny in Canadian homes

Abstract

Naturally occurring isotopes of radon in indoor air are identified as the second leading cause of lung cancer after tobacco smoking. Radon-222 (radon gas) and radon-220 (thoron gas) are the most common isotopes of radon. While the radon equilibrium factor is well established, the equilibrium factor between thoron progeny and thoron gas is still not well known. Thoron gas and progeny concentrations were determined in the lowest floors of 138 Canadian homes simultaneously. While thoron gas was only detectable in about 52% of the homes, thoron progeny concentrations were measured in every home surveyed. Thoron concentrations, thoron progeny concentrations, and the equilibrium factors varied widely and were log-normally distributed. With a 3 months simultaneous measurement of thoron and thoron progeny concentrations, the equilibrium factor was determined to be 0.024 with a geometric standard deviation of 2.7.