Abstract
Radon is an inert radioactive gas. A long term exposure to high concentration of radon causes lung cancer. Taking this into account, an investigation in some offices of Adigrat Universityhas been made to estimate the radon concentrations and to determine the health risk of the workers in the community. In the present study, Solid State Nuclear Track Detectors (LR-115 type II) has been used to measure the emission of radon from 12 offices for a period of 3 months. After an exposure time of 3 months, films were removed from each office andtaken for etching. After the etching, films were washed with distilled water and allowed to dry for 1day. Finally, alpha tracks were counted using an optical microscope at magnification power of 400X. Results obtained in the present study show that the value of concentration of radon ranges from 171.31 Bq.m−3 to 394.05 Bq.m−3 with mean concentration273.79 Bq.m−3 and standard deviation of 79.7Bq.m−3 and the inhalation dose rate varies from a minimum of 1.54 mSv.y−1 to a maximum of 3.55 mSv.y−1 with an average of 2.46 mSv.y−1 and standard deviation of 0.72 mSv.y−1. Even though, radon concentration levels were found to be higher the inhalation dose rate is safe within recommended limits
Highlights
The knowledge of the radioactivity level in building materials is important in order to estimate the radiological hazards on human health
Radon is naturally occurring radioactive noble gas which has no test, odor or color. It produced by the decay of Radium which is foundin rocks, soils and building materials
Decay products are suspended in the air which we breathe
Summary
The knowledge of the radioactivity level in building materials is important in order to estimate the radiological hazards on human health. Radon is naturally occurring radioactive noble gas which has no test, odor or color It produced by the decay of Radium which is foundin rocks, soils and building materials. It comes from the natural decay of uranium 238 series, with atomic number 86 and mass number 222 It was discovered by the German physicist Friedrich Ernst Dorn in 1900, who called it niton. The risk is very low when radon is diluted to extremely low concentrations in the open, radon in room air typically contributes up to 50% to the background radiation In places such as caves and mines, it can accumulate up to dangerous concentrations and may cause substantial health damage after long-term exposure. Radon can be found in drinking water and this can sometimes present a hazard
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