Domestic radon remediation of U.K. dwellings by sub-slab depressurisation: Evidence for a baseline contribution from constructional materials

Groves-Kirkby, Chris J; Denman, Anthony R; Phillips, Paul S; Tornberg, R; Woolridge, Anne C; Crockett, Robin G M

doi:10.1016/j.envint.2007.09.012

Cited by 20 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…The fraction of radon which is released relative to its total production is known as the emanation coefficient, and can range from 0 to 1 but is generally between 0.2 and 0.5 (Tanner 1980;Greeman and Rose 1995;Schumann and Gundersen 1996). The emanation coefficient, in turn, is very dependent on moisture content (e.g.…”

Section: Exhalation Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Radon sources and impacts: a review of mining and non-mining issues

Mudd

2008

Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol

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Radon is a ubiquitous natural carcinogen derived from the three primordial radionuclides of the uranium series ( 238 U and 235 U) and thorium series ( 232 Th). In general, it is present at very low concentrations in the outdoor or indoor environment, but a number of scenarios can give rise to significant radiological exposures. Historically, these scenarios were not recognised, and took many centuries to understand the links between the complex behaviour of radon and progeny decay and health risks such as lung cancer. However, in concert with the rapid evolution in the related sciences of nuclear physics and radiological health in the first half of the twentieth century, a more comprehensive understanding of the links between radon, its progeny and health impacts such as lung cancer has evolved. It is clear from uranium miner studies that acute occupational exposures lead to significant increases in cancer risk, but chronic or sub-chronic exposures, such as indoor residential settings, while suggestive of health risks, still entails various uncertainties. At present, prominent groups such as the BEIR or UNSCEAR committees argue that the 'linear no threshold' (LNT) model is the most appropriate model for radiation exposure management, based on their detailed review and analysis of uranium miner, residential, cellular or molecular studies. The LNT model implies that any additional or excess exposure to radon and progeny increases overall risks such as lung cancer. A variety of engineering approaches are available to address radon exposure problems. Where high radon scenarios are encountered, such as uranium mining, the most cost effective approach is well-engineered ventilation systems. For residential radon problems, various options can be assessed, including building design and passive or active ventilation systems. This paper presents a very broad but thorough review of radon sources, its behaviour (especially the importance of its radioactive decay progeny), common mining and non-mining scenarios which can give rise to significant radon and progeny exposures, followed by a review of associated health impacts, culminating in typical engineering approaches to reduce exposures and rehabilitate wastes.

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Section: Exhalation Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…2. The recoil distance a radon ( 222 Rn) atom can travel in different media is about 20-70 nm for solids, 100 nm in water and 64,000 nm in air (Tanner 1980;Greeman and Rose 1995).…”

Section: Basic Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radon sources and impacts: a review of mining and non-mining issues

Mudd

2008

Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol

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“…Thus, indoor radon concentrations (IRCs) vary strongly from region to region (Friedmann et al, 1996;Manic et al, 2006). If these regional differences can be identified correctly, substantial reductions of radon exposure to the population can be achieved through the appropriate construction of new buildings and the mitigation of already existing buildings (Groves-Kirkby et al, 2008). The prediction of IRCs and identifying zones at risk is however difficult and still subject to scientific debate (Friedmann and Bossew, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Improved predictive mapping of indoor radon concentrations using ensemble regression trees based on automatic clustering of geological units

Kropat

Bochud

Jaboyedoff

et al. 2015

Journal of Environmental Radioactivity

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“…INHALED PROGENY of 222 Rn (radon progeny) is the most important source of irradiation of the human respiratory tract (Yu et al 2001;Tokonami et al 2003;Groves-Kirkby et al 2008;Allison et al 2008;Iwaoka et al 2013). The radioactive decay of radon and its progeny can lead to ionization of air molecules and consequently influence aerosol size distribution (Zhang et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of the Saturation Phenomena of the Neutralization Rate of Positively Charged 218Po in Water Vapor

Tan¹,

Xiao²,

Jian³

et al. 2014

Health Physics

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Generally, 88% of the freshly generated 218Po ions decayed from 222Rn are positively charged. These positive ions become neutralized by recombination with negative ions, and the main source of the negative ions is the OH- ions formed by radiolysis of water vapor. However, the neutralization rate of positively charged 218Po versus the square root of the concentration of H2O will be a constant when the concentration of H2O is sufficiently high. Since the electron affinity of the hydroxyl radical formed by water vapor is high, the authors propose that the hydroxyl radical can grab an electron to become OH-. Because the average period of collision with other positively charged ions and the average life of the OH- are much longer than those of the electron, the average concentration of negative ions will grow when the water vapor concentration increases. The authors obtained a model to describe the growth of OH- ions. From this model, it was found that the maximum value of the OH- ion concentration is limited by the square root of the radon concentration. If the radon concentration is invariant, the OH- ion concentration should be approximately a constant when the water vapor concentration is higher than a certain value. The phenomenon that the neutralization rate of positively charged 218Po versus the square root of the water vapor concentration will be saturated when the water vapor concentration is sufficiently high can be explained by this mechanism. This mechanism can be used also to explain the phenomenon that the detection efficiency of a radon monitor based on the electrostatic collection method seems to be constant when the water vapor concentration is high.

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Domestic radon remediation of U.K. dwellings by sub-slab depressurisation: Evidence for a baseline contribution from constructional materials

Cited by 20 publications

References 31 publications

Radon sources and impacts: a review of mining and non-mining issues

Radon sources and impacts: a review of mining and non-mining issues

Improved predictive mapping of indoor radon concentrations using ensemble regression trees based on automatic clustering of geological units

Analysis of the Saturation Phenomena of the Neutralization Rate of Positively Charged 218Po in Water Vapor

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