Abstract
All forms of life on earth including man have evolved in the presence of radiation and have always been exposed to them from the natural environment. The health effect from exposure to alpha particles depends greatly on how a person is exposed. If alpha-emitters are inhaled, swallowed, or get into the body through a cut, the alpha particles can damage sensitive living tissue. In this paper, investigations have been made to determine the presence of alpha activity in the air. Hence, the alpha activity was measured by collecting Airborne Particulate Matter (APM) non-simultaneously on Whatman filters from ten sampling sites in Kanyakumari District during the summer and winter seasons using a high volume sampling method. The sampling sites are characterized by different contributions from ore refining factories like Indian Rare Earths (IRE) Limited, mountain areas, some industrial, non-nuclear activities like tiles and brick factories in and around the Kanyakumari district. The alpha activity in airborne particulate matter collected was determined by Alpha Counter and their results were tabulated.
Highlights
Alpha particles come from the decay of the heaviest radioactive elements, such as uranium, radium, and polonium
In the area of Kanyakumari district, the highest alpha activity value was found during the winter season based on the observations made on two consecutive years between December 2014 and May 2016
It was observed that the highest and the lowest gross alpha activity values were found in the urban areas of Kanyakumari District based on seasonal variation
Summary
Alpha particles come from the decay of the heaviest radioactive elements, such as uranium, radium, and polonium. Even though alpha particles are very energetic, they are so heavy that they use up their energy over short distances and are unable to travel very far from the atom. Alpha particles lack the energy to penetrate even the outer layer of skin, so exposure to the outside of the body is not a major concern (Songul et al 2012). Alpha radiation is an average of about 20 times more dangerous, and in experiments with inhaled alpha emitters, up to 1000 times more dangerous than an equivalent activity of beta-emitting or gamma-emitting radioisotopes. An increase in the background ionization radiation from numerous sources has various health side effects on the populace (Avwiri & Go 2006)
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