Radiological Hazard Resulting from Natural Radioactivity of Soil in East of Shazand Power Plant

Document Type : Original Paper

Authors

1 Department of Nuclear Physics, Faculty of Science Arak University, Arak 38156 Iran

2 Arak University

Abstract

Introduction: Nuclear radiation is potentially harmful to humans and soil contamination with radionuclides is the main source of human radiation exposure. These radionuclides can., enter to human body through the food chain. In this study, 34 soil samples were collected from between Arak city and Shazand Power Plant over 20 km length and analyzed.
Materials and Methods: The specific activities of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs were measured in soil samples, using gamma-ray spectrometry and a high-purity germanium (HPGe) detector. For all the samples, we calculated radiological hazards such as radium equivalent (Raeq), dose rate in air (D), internal and external hazard indices (Hin, Hex), annual gonadal dose equivalent (AGDE), and excess lifetime cancer risk.
Results: The specific activities of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs in the soil samples varied from 18.92 to 43.11, 25.31 to 54.27, 230.17 to 728.25, and from in and Hex wereless than unity. Excess lifetime cancer risk of the samples ranged from 0.21×10-3 to 0.31×10-3, which are close to the mean world value (0.29×10-3) butlower than the acceptable value (10-3).
Conclusion: The radiological parameters estimated from the specific activities of the radionuclides in soil were within the acceptable range, and therefore, radiation exposure poses no significant risks to the resident population in the vicinity of the power plant.

Keywords

Main Subjects


  1. References

     

    1. UNSCEAR( United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation). Exposure from natural sources of radiation, United Nations publication sales No. 10.IX.3. . United Nations, United Nations Office at Vienna. 2008.
    2. UNSCEAR. United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation.In: Sources and Effects of Ionizing Radiation, vol. I. United Nations, New York. 2000.
    3. Singh P, Rana N, Azam A, Naqvi A, Srivastava D. Levels of uranium in waters from some Indian cities determined by fission track analysis. Radiation Measurements.  1996; 26(5):683-7. Doi: 10.1016/S1350-4487(97)82882-X.
    4. Fireston BR, Shirley SV, Baglin MC, Frank Chu SY, Zipkin J. The 8 Edition of Table of Isotopes. 1996.
    5. Kalač P. A review of edible mushroom radioactivity. Food Chemistry. 2001; 75 (1): 29-35. Doi: 10.1016/S0308-8146(01)00171-6.
    6. Papastefanou C. Radiation impact from lignite burning due to coal-fired power plants. 226Ra in Greek. Health Physics. 1996; 70(2): 187–91.
    7. Thermal Power Plants available from http://en.tpph.ir/SitePages/AboutUs/TPPH_Catalog_EN.pdf.
    8. IAEA- TECDOC- 1360. Collection and Preparation of bottom sediment samples for analysis of radionuclides an trace element. International Atomic Energy Agency. . VIENNA. 2003.
    9. L'Annonziata M. Handbook of Radioactivity analysis. Third Edition Academic Press access online Elsevier . Available from: http:// Amazoon.com, 2012.
    10. Aziz A. Methods of Low-Level Counting and Spectrometry. Symposium Berlin, 1981; 221.
    11. IAEA-154 (International Atomic Energy Agency). Radionuclides in whey powder, Analytical Quality Control Services. Vienna;Austria.2000.
    12. El-Taher A, Uosif MAM. The assessment of the radiation hazard indices due to uranium and thorium in some Egyptian environmental matrices. Journal of Physics D, Appl. Phys. 2006; 39(20): 4516–21, Doi: 10.1088/0022-3727/39/20/032.
    13. Ravisankar R, Sivakumar S, Chandrasekaran A, Prince J, Prakash Jebakumar, Vijayalakshmi I, et al. Spatial distribution of gamma radioactivity levels and radiological hazard indices in the east coastal sediments of Tamilnadu, India with statistical approach. Radiation Physics and Chemistry. 2014; 103:89-98. Doi: 10.1016/j.radphyschem.2014.05.037.
    14. Issa SAM, Mostafa AMA , Lotfy AM. Radiological impacts of natural radioactivity in phosphate rocks from El-Sibaiya and Red Sea coast mines. J Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., 2015; 303: 53-61. Doi:10.1007/s10967-014-3312-x.
    15. Krieger, R. Radioactivity of construction materials. Betonwerk Fertigteil-Technik,. 1981; 47(8): 468–73.
    16. Beretka J, Mathew PJ. Natural radioactivity of Australian building materials, industrial wastes and by products. Health Physics. 1985; 48 : 87-95.
    17. Zalewski M, Tomczak M, Kapala J. Radioactivity of building materials available in northeastern Poland. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies. 2001; 10(3): 183-8. 
    18. Mahmoud UMA. Specific Activity of 226Ra, 232Th and  40K for assessment of Radiation Hazards from Building Materials Commonly Used in Upper Egypt. SDU Journal of Science (E-Journal). 2011; 6 (2): 120-6.
    19. ICRP. International Commission on Radiological Protection ICRP Publication 65.1993; 23(2).
    20. ICRP Publication 119. Compendium of dose coefficient based on ICRP Publication 60, 2012; 41(1).
    21. Kannana V, Rajana MP, Iyengara MA, Rameshb R .Distribution of natural and              anthropogenic radionuclides in soil and beach sand samples of Kalpakam (India) using hyper pure germanium (HPGe) gamma ray spectrometry.  Appl. Radiat. Isot. 2002; 57:109‑19.
    22. Pourimani R, Asadpour F. Determination of Specific Activities of Radionuclides in Soil and Their Transfer Factor from Soil to Bean and Calculation of Cancer Risk for Bean Consumption in Iran. Arak Medical University Journal (AMUJ). 2016; 19(107): 9-18.
    23. Puorimani R,  Mazloom Shahraki M. Influence of different soil's parameters on the penetration of 137Cs.  Iranian Journal of Physics Research. 2013; 13(3): 214-7.
    24. EC112. European Commission Report on Radiological Protection Principles Concerning the Natural Radioactivity of Building Materials. Radiation Protection 1999; 112 .
    25. Zaidi JH, Arif M, Ahmed S, Fatima I, Qureshi IH. Determination of natural   radioactivity in building materials used in the Rawalpindi/ Islamabad area by γ-ray spectrometry and instrumental neutron activation analysis. Applied Radiation and Isotopes Journal. 1999; 51: 559-64.  Doi: 10.1016/S0969-8043(99)00073-1.
    26. Hasan MM, Ali MI , Paul D, Haydar MA, Islam  SMA. Natural Radioactivity and      Assessment of Associated Radiation Hazards in Soil and Water Samples Collected from in and around of the Barapukuria 2× 125 MW Coal Fired Thermal Power Plant, Dinajpur, Bangladesh . Journal of Nuclear and Particle Physics, 2014; 4(1): 17-24. Doi:10.5923/j.jnpp.20140401.03.
    27. Avwiri, GO. Determination of Radionuclide Levels in Soil and Water around Cement Companies in Port Harcourt. J.Appl.Sci.Environ.Mgt. 2005; 9(3): 27-9.
    28. Tani M, Jankovic-Mandic L, Gajic BA, Marko D, Dragovic S, Bacic G. Natural Radionuclides in Soil Pro files Sur round ing the Largest Coal-Fired Power Plant in Serbia . Nuclear Technology & Radiation Protection. 2016; 31(3): 247-59. Doi:10.2298/NTRP1603247T.
    29. Liu G, Luo Q, Ding M, Feng J. Natural radionuclides in soil near a coal-fired power plant in the high background radiation area, South China. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 2015; 187: 356. Doi.org/10.1007/s10661-015-4501-y.