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Radon and thoron exhalation rate, emanation factor and radioactivity risks of building materials of the Iberian Peninsula.

ABSTRACT: Radon (²²²Rn) and thoron (²²⁰Rn) are radioactive gases emanating from geological materials. Inhalation of these gases is closely related to an increase in the probability of lung cancer if the levels are high. The majority of studies focus on radon, and the thoron is normally ignored because of its short half-life (55.6 s). However, thoron decay products can also cause a significant increase in dose. In buildings with high radon levels, the main mechanism for entry of radon is pressure-driven flow of soil gas through cracks in the floor. Both radon and thoron can also be released from building materials to the indoor atmosphere. In this work, we study the radon and thoron exhalation and emanation properties of an extended variety of common building materials manufactured in the Iberian Peninsula (Portugal and Spain) but exported and used in all countries of the world. Radon and thoron emission from samples collected in the closed chamber was measured by an active method that uses a continuous radon/thoron monitor. The correlations between exhalation rates of these gases and their parent nuclide exhalation (radium/thorium) concentrations were examined. Finally, indoor radon and thoron and the annual effective dose were calculated from radon/thoron concentrations in the closed chamber. Zircon is the material with the highest concentration values of ²²⁶Ra and ²³²Th and the exhalation and emanation rates. Also in the case of zircon and some granites, the annual effective dose was higher than the annual exposure limit for the general public of 1 mSv y^-1, recommended by the European regulations.

SUBMITTER: Frutos-Puerto S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7666814 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Radon and thoron exhalation rate, emanation factor and radioactivity risks of building materials of the Iberian Peninsula.

Frutos-Puerto Samuel S Pinilla-Gil Eduardo E Andrade Eva E Reis Mário M Madruga María José MJ Miró Rodríguez Conrado C

PeerJ 20201112

Radon (<sup>222</sup>Rn) and thoron (<sup>220</sup>Rn) are radioactive gases emanating from geological materials. Inhalation of these gases is closely related to an increase in the probability of lung cancer if the levels are high. The majority of studies focus on radon, and the thoron is normally ignored because of its short half-life (55.6 s). However, thoron decay products can also cause a significant increase in dose. In buildings with high radon levels, the main mechanism for entry of radon ...[more]

PMID: 33240648

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Project description:The Iberian Peninsula has been the focus of attention of numerous studies dealing with mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation, most of them targeting the control region segment. In the present study we sequenced the control region of 3,024 Spanish individuals from areas where available data were still limited. We also compiled mtDNA haplotypes from the literature involving 4,588 sequences and 28 population groups or small regions. We meta-analyzed all these data in order to shed further light on patterns of geographic variation, taking advantage of the large sample size and geographic coverage, in contrast with the atomized sampling strategy of previous work. The results indicate that the main mtDNA haplogroups show primarily clinal geographic patterns across the Iberian geography, roughly along a North-South axis. Haplogroup HV0 (where haplogroup U is nested) is more prevalent in the Franco Cantabrian region, in good agreement with previous findings that identified this area as a climate refuge during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), prior to a subsequent demographic re-expansion towards Central Europe and the Mediterranean. Typical sub-Saharan and North African lineages are slightly more prevalent in South Iberia, although at low frequencies; this pattern has been shaped mainly by the transatlantic slave trade and the Arab invasion of the Iberian Peninsula. The results also indicate that summary statistics that aim to measure molecular variation, or AMOVA, have limited sensitivity to detect population substructure, in contrast to patterns revealed by phylogeographic analysis. Overall, the results suggest that mtDNA variation in Iberia is substantially stratified. These patterns might be relevant in biomedical studies given that stratification is a common cause of false positives in case-control mtDNA association studies, and should be also considered when weighting the DNA evidence in forensic casework, which is strongly dependent on haplotype frequencies.

Dataset Information

Radon and thoron exhalation rate, emanation factor and radioactivity risks of building materials of the Iberian Peninsula.

Publications

Radon and thoron exhalation rate, emanation factor and radioactivity risks of building materials of the Iberian Peninsula.

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