Granite Countertops Research Articles

The Third Annual Thomas S. Tenforde Topical Lecture HPS Ask the Experts: The Most Intriguing Questions and Answers.

The Health Physics Society (HPS) conceived of the idea of an online "Ask the Experts" (ATE) feature in 1999 when the Society created its website. ATE features are popular now, but at that time it was a novel idea, so there was no assurance it would succeed. Now 20 y later, the HPS considers its ATE feature a success and the most valuable service the Society offers for the public. Nearly 13,000 questions have been submitted to the feature. They come both from members of the public and from health physicists. All have been answered personally by radiation safety experts. While it is important to answer questions personally, it is recognized that the most far-reaching impact of the feature is the written material on the ATE section of the website, which is provided for people searching for answers to their concerns and questions. Posted material includes frequently asked questions, summary papers on topics of interest, and links to other pertinent information. This is in addition to answers to a select group of submitted questions. To enhance the information search, all postings, including answers to questions, have headlines. These serve as keywords that facilitate website searches. The feature, managed by one lead editor, 20 topic editors, and more than 300 experts, draws over one million visitors per year. This statistic suggests that a substantial number of people are finding answers to their questions on the site and, therefore, do not need to submit personal questions. ATE editors have learned much about effective interaction with questioners, especially members of the public. Most important, answers should show compassion, present the bottom line first, be brief, and use plain language. Heavy reliance on peer-reviewed documents adds to the credibility of the information. Questions from the public cover a wide range of subjects; however, by far the most frequent deal with medical exposures, especially computed tomography procedures. Other questions deal with a wide range of concerns including products from Japan, granite countertops, radon, smoke detectors, luggage and whole-body scanners, and radiation exposure from airline travel. Another major concern is exposure to nonionizing radiation sources such as cell phones, radar, ultraviolet radiation, lasers, and power lines. Examples are provided of the most intriguing questions that have come to the ATE feature and the answers provided by the experts.

Postlude for Four Hands at the Great Organ, and: Granite Countertop

Postlude for Four Hands at the Great Organ, and: Granite Countertop

Radon exhalation from granite countertops and expected indoor radon levels

Radon (222Rn) exhalation rates from granite countertops were measured using a continuous radon monitor. The countertops could be separated in three groups according to radon their exhalation rates. However, even for a worst-case scenario (e.g. E ~ 1.10 Bq m−2 h−1, no air circulation and full tile home) the contribution to indoor radon concentration is estimated to be [Rn] < 100 Bq m−3. In addition, despite the uneven radium distribution in the granite slabs, there is significant correlation (r 2 = 0.50) between the measured radon levels and the radium content of the granites.

Effect of Extensive Use of Granite Countertops on the γ-Radiation Dose to Occupants of the New Buildings of King Abdulaziz University

Exposure dose due to γ-radiation was measured in the new buildings of King Abdulaziz University using an advanced car-borne monitoring system to evaluate the effect of the extensive use of granites on the exposure dose rate to occupants. The measurements were conducted inside and outside the new buildings. For comparison, measurements inside the old buildings of limited granite use were conducted. The results indicated that the average exposure dose rate in the corridors of granite countertops was 0.115 μSv/h compared to 0.093 μSv/h in corridors of marble floors in the old buildings. About 4.2% increase in the annual effective dose due granite use was estimated. A maximum excess fatal cancer risk to an individual working in the new buildings due to exposure to excess γ-radiation from granite countertops was estimated by 1.4x10-6. The obtained results are discussed in detail and some conclusions are drawn.

Where We’ll Leave This for Now

Your husband stares at your breasts as you change into the pink pajama set your mother gave you for Christmas. You quickly pull the nightshirt over your head and turn away from him, walking into the bathroom and closing the door. You cup your breasts through the cotton. They're tender from swelling, and you feel embarrassed about them, like an ex-porn star with leftover silicone implants. They aren't your husband's for enjoying. They aren't yours, either. They belong to-well. You aren't sure.When you get in bed, your husband keeps staring at you, even more intently than he did three years ago when you chopped your hair into a pixie. He's been staring at you all evening, since you came out of the bathroom holding a pregnancy test with two pink lines. You hoped the second pink line, much paler than the first, could be stared into oblivion, the way stars can be made to disappear. Maybe your husband is staring at you with this hope, you think.The next morning you call your doctor before you brush your teeth. Your husband goes to his job; you go to yours, and afterward, to the graduate class you're taking at night. You fall asleep at the seminar table and wake up with drool on your cheek. You've never fallen asleep in class before; you've never been lazy, not once.You've built a good life. You can construct four walls around the reasons to have a child: your job pays fifty thousand a year; your husband's pays sixty-five thousand. You're married. You're twenty-seven, would be twenty-eight by the time the-ah, the what? W hat term should you pick? You try to remember the words Republicans use and the words Democrats use. Embryo? Zygote? Fetus? Virus? Life? Thing? Baby? There's a scien- tific term somewhere on the internet, but you decide on kernel. A kernel on the verge, kind of like you in your one-bedroom apartment. Your sixmonth-long marriage. Your half-completed master's degree. The fact that you don't feel ready. Those are the other walls you could build for another house, another future, but they feel more like fences that any skeptic could tear down.W hen he gets home from work, your husband finds you microwaving popcorn in the kitchen. He tells you he got some advice from his coworker, Patrick: that the two of you should make one spreadsheet of pros and cons and another sheet to explore how having a child would impact your budget. W hat exceptional advice, you say. You think of Patrick, who has a two-year-old of his own, Tommy. Tommy wears his mother's hand-sewn bowties to preschool. You've seen the photos posted on social media. His mother, Olivia, wears a string of pearls and five-inch heels to every holiday party. She quit her job to stay home. You imagine Olivia tut-tutting at the news of your kernel, leaning one hand on her granite countertop, brushing the other hand through her long blond hair as chicken cordon bleu cooks in the oven.You remind your husband of the time Patrick told everyone at the company picnic that the chili you'd labeled vegan actually had a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce in it. You tell your husband he doesn't get to decide who knows about your pregnancy. Not Patrick, not Olivia, not your husband's entire company. His boss. Maybe he'll get a raise for the good news. Wouldn't that be nice? You're screaming at him now. Your husband tells you you're being completely crazy, that Patrick promised not to tell anyone, not even Olivia. Crazy? You, crazy? You rip open the bag of popcorn and throw it at him and tell him to get the hell out.But your husband won't leave the apartment, and instead is squatting on the couch behind the blare of the television, so you pack a bag and drive to your friend Virginia's. She had three abortions, all of them at nineteen. Now she's thirty-two and lives alone in a studio on the twenty-second floor of a high rise. You have never known her to have a steady boyfriend, just the two cats you pet when you walk in the door. You burst into tears and tell her everything, about the pregnancy and about Olivia knowing about the pregnancy. …

Eff ect of the Extensive Use of Granites as Countertops in Luxury Buildings on the Indoor Radon Concentration and the Potential Risk to Occupants

Radon concentration has been measured inside the new buildings of King Abdulaziz University to study the effect of the extensive use of granites as countertops on the indoor radon concentration. A set of indoor and outdoor measurements has been conducted using radon measurement instruments. For comparison, indoor radon concentration was also measured in the older buildings, where granite countertops were in use at only a few sites near the main entrances. The obtained results indicate that the average indoor radon concentrations were 8.8 ± 4.8 and 11.2 ± 4.9 Bq/m3 in the old and new buildings, respectively. The average outdoor concentration was about 4.4 Bq/m3. These values are lower than the global average values. The average annual eff ective dose due to indoor radon was calculated for the general public and for the occupants of the new buildings. Risk estimates have been done based on the average radon concentration values. The average annual effective dose for the public due to radon inhalation was estimated to be 0.264 mSv, and for the occupants of the new buildings to be 0.280 mSv. The associated risk of lung cancer mortality to inhabitants due to lifetime radon inhalation is estimated to be 102.9x10-5 for the public and 109.5x10-5 for the occupants of the new buildings.

Predicted indoor radon concentrations from a Monte Carlo simulation of 1 000 000 granite countertop purchases

Previous research examining radon exposure from granite countertops relied on using a limited number of exposure scenarios. We expanded upon this analysis and determined the probability that installing a granite countertop in a residential home would lead to a meaningful radon exposure by performing a Monte Carlo simulation to obtain a distribution of potential indoor radon concentrations attributable to granite. The Monte Carlo analysis included estimates of the probability that a particular type of granite would be purchased, the radon flux associated with that type, the size of the countertop purchased, the volume of the home where it would be installed and the air exchange rate of that home. One million countertop purchases were simulated and 99.99% of the resulting radon concentrations were lower than the average outdoor radon concentrations in the US (14.8 Bq m−3; 0.4 pCi l−1). The median predicted indoor concentration from granite countertops was 0.06 Bq m−3 (1.59 × 10−3 pCi l−1), which is over 2000 times lower than the US Environmental Protection Agency’s action level for indoor radon (148 Bq m−3; 4 pCi l−1). The results show that there is a low probability of a granite countertop causing elevated levels of radon in a home.

Prevalence of Dry Methods in Granite Countertop Fabrication in Oklahoma

Granite countertop fabricators are at risk of exposure to respirable crystalline silica, which may cause silicosis and other lung conditions. The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of exposure control methods, especially wet methods, in granite countertop fabrication in Oklahoma to assess how many workers might be at risk of overexposure to crystalline silica in this industry. Granite fabrication shops in the three largest metropolitan areas in Oklahoma were enumerated, and 47 of the 52 shops participated in a survey on fabrication methods. Countertop shops were small businesses with average work forces of fewer than 10 employees. Ten shops (21%) reported using exclusively wet methods during all fabrication steps. Thirty-five shops (74%) employing a total of about 200 workers reported using dry methods all or most of the time in at least one fabrication step. The tasks most often performed dry were edge profiling (17% of shops), cutting of grooves for reinforcing rods (62% of shops), and cutting of sink openings (45% of shops). All shops reported providing either half-face or full-face respirators for use during fabrication, but none reported doing respirator fit testing. Few shops reported using any kind of dust collection system. These findings suggest that current consumer demand for granite countertops is giving rise to a new wave of workers at risk of silicosis due to potential overexposure to granite dust.

Activity concentrations and dose rates from decorative granite countertops

The gamma radiation emitted from a variety of commercial decorative granites available for use in U.S. homes has been measured with portable survey meters as well as an NaI(Th) gamma spectrometer. The 40K, U-nat, and 232Th activity concentrations were determined using a full-spectrum analysis. The dose rates that would result from two different arrangements of decorative granite slabs as countertops were explored in simulations involving an adult anthropomorphic phantom.

Assessing exposure to granite countertops—part 1: Radiation

Humans are continuously exposed to low levels of ionizing radiation. Known sources include radon, soil, cosmic rays, medical treatment, food, and building products such as gypsum board and concrete. Little information exists about radiation emissions and associated doses from natural stone finish materials such as granite countertops in homes. To address this knowledge gap, gross radioactivity, gamma ray activity, and dose rate were determined for slabs of granite marketed for use as countertops. Annual effective radiation doses were estimated from measured dose rates and human activity patterns while accounting for the geometry of granite countertops in a model kitchen. Gross radioactivity, gamma activity, and dose rate varied significantly among and within slabs of granite with ranges for median levels at the slab surface of ND to 3000 cpm, ND to 98,000 cpm, and ND to 1.5E-4 mSv/h, respectively. The maximum activity concentrations of the (40)K, (232)Th, and (226)Ra series were 2715, 231, and 450 Bq/kg, respectively. The estimated annual radiation dose from spending 4 h/day in a hypothetical kitchen ranged from 0.005 to 0.18 mSv/a depending on the type of granite. In summary, our results show that the types of granite characterized in this study contain varying levels of radioactive isotopes and that their observed emissions are consistent with those reported in the scientific literature. We also conclude from our analyses that these emissions are likely to be a minor source of external radiation dose when used as countertop material within the home and present a negligible risk to human health.

Assessing exposure to granite countertops—part 2: Radon

Radon gas ((222)Rn) is a natural constituent of the environment and a risk factor for lung cancer that we are exposed to as a result of radioactive decay of radium ((226)Ra) in stone and soil. Granite countertops, in particular, have received recent media attention regarding their potential to emit radon. Radon flux was measured on 39 full slabs of granite from 27 different varieties to evaluate the potential for exposure and examine determinants of radon flux. Flux was measured at up to six pre-selected locations on each slab and also at areas identified as potentially enriched after a full-slab scan using a Geiger-Muller detector. Predicted indoor radon concentrations were estimated from the measured radon flux using the CONTAM indoor air quality model. Whole-slab average emissions ranged from less than limit of detection to 79.4 Bq/m(2)/h (median 3.9 Bq/m(2)/h), similar to the range reported in the literature for convenience samples of small granite pieces. Modeled indoor radon concentrations were less than the average outdoor radon concentration (14.8 Bq/m(3); 0.4 pCi/l) and average indoor radon concentrations (48 Bq/m(3); 1.3 pCi/l) found in the United States. Significant within-slab variability was observed for stones on the higher end of whole slab radon emissions, underscoring the limitations of drawing conclusions from discrete samples.

Radon gas levels increasing in home due to granite countertops

Radon gas levels increasing in home due to granite countertops

Bringing Green Homes within Reach: Healthier Housing for More People

Gaze upon the Helliers’ half-built house in Bristol, Vermont, and you might think you’re looking at an ordinary home construction project. Table saws, building materials, and piles of earth lie around the newly framed dwelling, while a crew of carpenters mills around the site, dressed for warmth in the chilly fall air. But look closer, and some unique features emerge. The exterior frame is wrapped in an outer layer of heat-trapping insulation. Sunshine streams in through large, south-facing windows, flooding the interior living spaces with light. Once the house is completed, solar panels will supply the family’s hot water and much of its electrical power. And indoor finishes, paints, rugs, and fabrics will be nontoxic. In short, the Helliers’ house is being built to be green. And that puts it in good company; new green homes jumped in number by 30% between 2005 and 2006 and could include up to 5% of the entire U.S. housing market within five years, predicts McGraw-Hill Construction, an industry information provider, in its June 2006 Residential Green Building SmartMarket Report. That makes green homes bright spots in an otherwise dismal housing market facing its worst slump in decades. To everyone’s benefit, green homes link sustainable materials and practices with better human and environmental health. “You’re really looking at a tripod of components,” says David Johnston, president of green building consultancy What’s Working and author of Green from the Ground Up, a forthcoming book on sustainable residential design. “First, energy efficiency has to be above minimal code requirements for your climate. The second component has to do with improved water and resource efficiency, and the third concerns indoor air quality. If your design doesn’t address all three of these issues, then you don’t have a green home.” According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Air and Radiation, indoor air is typically 2–5 times more polluted than outdoor air, owing to the presence of asthma-inducing agents such as mold and toxic chemicals in carpets, paints, and other synthetic materials. In fact, the EPA ranks indoor air as one of the top five human health risks, says agency spokesperson Dave Ryan. By requiring nontoxic materials, green designs limit indoor exposure to carcinogens such as formaldehyde in manufactured wood products including sheathing and particleboard, and to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in finishes. Home energy uses also contribute to global warming. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) in Washington, DC, estimates that domestic power demands account for 21% of all the greenhouse gases emitted in the United States. The construction industry as a whole accounts for 48% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, according to advocacy group Architecture 2030. And by optimizing insulation, green designs save on oil and gas bills, which are (quite literally in poorly insulated homes) going through the roof. But even as green homes gain in popularity, they’re also dogged by a sticky association with the rich, seen by many as too pricey for ordinary buyers. Indeed, McGraw-Hill Construction identified cost perceptions as a top obstacle to green building among homeowners and builders alike. Fueling that preoccupation with cost is a media obsession with “eco-mansions,” laments Charles Lockwood, a green building consultant in Los Angeles and New York. “Most of what you see in the press would leave you thinking you’d have to live in Malibu or Aspen to afford one of these places,” he says. To wit: the Maine Sunday Telegram in Portland ran a feature on 4 November 2007 titled “Unaffordably Green?” about a $1 million ultra-green home in nearby Freeport that was unsold after a year on the market. Christopher Briley, an architect with Green Design Studio in Yarmouth, Maine, concedes that most people who build their own houses have above-average incomes (McGraw-Hill Construction’s SmartMarket Report shows that nearly two-thirds of those who buy green homes make more than $50,000 a year). And buyers with more money to spend, Briley says, are apt to mix green design elements in with a host of other more expensive features—radiant floors and granite countertops, for instance—that skew costs higher. “A lot of these houses are going to be expensive anyway,” he says. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t have an affordable green house. It’s all about where you decide to spend your money.”

Sunrooms, Starbucks, and Salmon Steak: Academic Nonsense and Domestic Sensibility in Lev Raphael's Nick Hoffman Mysteries

At the beginning of Little Miss Evil, Nick Hoffman, the first-person narrator and amateur sleuth of Lev Raphael's campus mysteries, asks his partner Stefan, 'Do you think we spend too much time on food?' Puzzled, Stefan, replies, 'What do you mean?' just having finished dicing leeks and shallots for potato lasagna with wild mushrooms and celery herb sauce. Taking sip of Delicieux de Noix, walnut aperitif, Nick explains, 'Well, we talk about it, we read food magazines, restaurant reviews, sometimes even plan vacations around where we're going to eat.' Nick goes on to point out all the kitchen remodeling they just completed that summer: 'Gray-blue granite countertops and backsplashes, antiqued, glass-doored cabinetry; and appliance garages that reduced the clutter' (1). Stefan is not convinced, and when Nick suggests, tentatively, that maybe we should eat more simply, Stefan concludes that 'you've been reading too many of those Janet Evanovich books' (2). The bottom line: Stefan needs to cook in order to be able to relax, and for both Stefan and Nick, food is an important part of their domestic comfort zone: safe haven to survive, refuel, and help solve the crimes of their often deadly academic surroundings. As Stefan asks, 'How else could you deal with working in department of psychopaths?' (LM E 5). Stefan and Nick both teach in the English, American Studies, and Rhetoric department of the State University of Michigan, Stefan as the writer- in-residence, and Nick as an untenured composi- tion professor and Edith Wharton specialist. As in most academic novels, both their department and the entire university are snake pits of deadly rivalries, administrative idiocy, and an all- around weirdness that makes Alice in Wonder- land look like documentary (BDTH 22). The building that houses the EAR department is dilapidated dump with enormous, inhumanly high ceilings and windows; sagging, heavy floors; exposed piping; more than occasional bats; and lots of dark and smelly corners (LGC 47); and Nick's colleagues are collection of braggarts, egotists, careerists, and no-talents (DCL 245), split into rival comp and literature camps. The rhetoric professors are surly, querulous, and under-qualified... their of fices... smaller, their schedules less convenient, and their complaints ignored (EWM 2). The rest of the faculty despised them. The administration, of course, is nightmare, a small-potatoes version of Russia's current kleptocracy... [existing] solely to enrich small group of people: upper-level administrators, the president, and the sports staff (BTDH 9), while test-marketing the mis- sion, Students are important. Often, Nick's pessimism also extends to academia in general: People tell me that academia isn't the real world, but what could be more real than envy, hypocrisy, back-stabbing, overblown rhetoric, cruelty, obsession with reputation, and the steady shredding of other people's dignity? (LME 5). In addition to all the regular lethality, SUM has been plagued by string of murders and murder attempts, all somehow related to Nick and his department. The victims include his office mate in Let's Get Criminal, two English majors, and two lesbian writers at an Edith Wharton conference conference designed to improve SUM's reputation in the area of women's issues). In the light of all this mayhem, it's no surprise that Nick- worried about his constantly wavering tenure chances, but also simply nice and sensitive guy- needs to find refuge, sustenance, and refueling energy away from academic politics. Teaching and research often help, but even more important is the comfort he finds in domestic pleasures: quiet hours with Stefan, their remodeled home (a pretty center-hall Colonial on the kind of green and quiet street you often see in thrillers like Face/Off, in which ordinary people's lives explode with improbabilities [LME 39]); their garden, sunroom, and state-of-the-art kitchen-and, of course, good food and drink: leisurely Sunday breakfasts with designer omelets and the New York Times; coffee, tea, and wine selections to match all moods and occasions; stress-relief Haagen Dazs; and, often twice daily, homecooked meals from what seems straight (or gay) out of Bon Appetit. …

Silica exposure during granite countertop fabrication.

(1999). Silica Exposure During Granite Countertop Fabrication. Applied Occupational and Environmental Hygiene: Vol. 14, No. 9, pp. 577-582.