Seasonal variation of radon concentration in water and assessment of whole-body dose to the public along South-west coast of Kerala, India

Abstract

The South-west coast of Kerala is a well-reported high background radiation area. Hence, the radiological protection of the population in this region has great concern. In view of this, the study has been undertaken to understand the distribution of radon ( 222 Rn) concentration in drinking water collected from the region. The seasonal variation of radon concentration in drinking water also forms part of the study. Emanometry method is used for the quantification of dissolved radon concentration in water collected from various open wells. The mean values of radon concentration obtained for pre- and post-monsoon were 0.95 Bq/l and 0.58 Bq/l, respectively. The whole-body dose ranges from 0.39 to 29.34 μSv/y for premonsoon and 1.33–18.76 μSv/y for postmonsoon. The average value of effective dose was below the recommended limit of 0.1 mSv/y suggested by WHO and EU council, and the water from the region can be safely consumed from the radiological protection point. All the results are presented and discussed in the manuscript.