Radiological Risk Assessment and Radioactivity Concentration in ediment of Tigris River of the Medical City/Bab Al Muadham

Athraa Naji Jameel

doi:10.30526/35.1.2796

Abstract

The concentrations of natural radionuclides in sediment samples from various locations along the stream of the Tigris riverbank in the Medical city in Bab Al- Muadham, Baghdad, had been examined using NaI(Tl) detector. The mean concentrations of specific activity for 238U, 232Th, 40K and 137Cs for sediments of the river was 13.5±4.6, 35.2±3.1, 272.2±21.4 and 1.5±0.35 Bq/kg respectively. The findings revealed that the concentration values of natural radionuclides and cesium were below permitted limits. The radiological hazard was compared with a global average (Radium equivalent, absorbed dose rate, radiation hazard index and annual effective dose equivalent) finding it was less than reported by UNSCEAR . The radium equivalent activity was 102.22 Bq/kg and the maximum absorbed dose rate was 88.1 nGy/h. At the same time, the mean annual effective dose equivalent was 420.1 µSv/y. The highest risk index was 0.39 and is much less than 1, except for the lifetime cancer risk were valuing between 164.2×10−3 to 1620×10 −3. This is a higher value than the global average.

Highlights

Since the middle of the twentieth century, radiological pollution has been one of the most critical worldwide environmental issues that have occupied the attention of world governments[1]
Table (1) shows specific activity concentrations of the samples collected from the sediment of the Tigris river region, the activity concentration of 238U range from 9.7 to 18.5 Bq/kg with a mean value 13.5±4.6 Bq/kg and from 24.33 to 54.00 Bq/kg for 232Th with mean value 35.2±3.1 Bq/kg
The variation of values in The radionuclide activity concentration and radioactivity coefficients in sediments are determined by particle size, pH, and waste from hospitals and industrial dumped in rivers

Summary

Introduction

Since the middle of the twentieth century, radiological pollution has been one of the most critical worldwide environmental issues that have occupied the attention of world governments[1]. Serious trends are represented in the great diversity and the emergence of some industrial complex, which is often accompanied by serious pollution that leads to the degradation of the ocean Biodynamic and erratic global environment. Sediments had an active role in hydrous radioecology; Soil and rocks are the key supply of radiation exposure to the population and a way of radionuclide migration into. Sediments are a significant source of radiation exposure to aquatic biota, and it acts as a medium of migration for the transfer of radionuclides within the aquatic environment. Sediment can have a total body effect due to external radiation originating directly from primordial radionuclides contained in sediment, or it can have an interior effect due to radon inhalation [9]

Methods

Results

Conclusion