Measurement of radioactivity and radon exhalation rate in different kinds of marbles and granites

Natural radioactivity and radon exhalation in building materials used in Italian dwellings

“…The natural radioactivity levels measured in the samples are comparable to those measured over a nationwide (Sciocchetti et al, 1983;Campos Venuti et al, 1985;Carrera et al, 1997) and worldwide scale (Ingersoll, 1983;Mustonen, 1984;Beretka and Mathew, 1985;Pakou et al, 1994;Ahmad et al, 1998b;Al-Jarallah, 2001;Walley El-Dine et al, 2001;Stoulos et al, 2003). As it can be seen in the tables, the measured minimum value of 226 Ra activity concentration was 0.53 Bq kg ÿ1 in the sample of red marble, whereas the maximum activity concentration was 280 Bq kg ÿ1 in a volcanic tuff.…”

Assessing exposure to granite countertops—part 2: Radon

“…Radon flux for these stones has been previously reported to range from 0.01 to 13.5 Bq/m 2 /h among B500 samples of structural and unidentified granite building materials obtained from several nations of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East (Khan et al, 1992;Chao and Tung, 1999;El-Dine et al, 2001;al-Jarallah, 2001;al-Jarallah et al, 2001al-Jarallah et al, , 2005Petropoulos et al, 2002;Fazal ur et al, 2003;Stoulos et al, 2003;Sundar et al, 2003;Arafa, 2004;Osmanlioglu, 2006;Singh et al, 2008;Sonkawade et al, 2008). The extent to which the granite samples examined in those studies represent inventories of natural stone countertops has not been evaluated.…”

Activity concentrations and dose rates from decorative granite countertops

“…Numerous works (Abbady et al, 2005;Abdel Hady et al, 1994;El Afifi, 2006;Al-Jarallah, 2001;Al-Jarallah et al, 2005;Arafa, 2004;Asghar et al, 2008;Badhan et al, 2009;Canbaz et al, 2010;El-Amri et al, 2003;Fazal-ur-Rehman et al, 2003;Fokianos et al, 2007;Haquin, 2008;Iqbal et al, 2000;Kitto et al, 2009;Myatt et al, 2010;Mustonen, 1985a,b;Ningappa et al, 2008;Osmanlioglou, 2006;Pavlidou et al, 2006;Rahman et al, 2008;Petropoulos et al, 2002;Quindos et al, 1988;Sahoo et al, 2007;Al-Selah and AlBerzan, 2007;Sengupta et al, 2009;Sonkawade et al, 2008;El-Taher et al, 2007;Tzortzis et al, 2003;Walley El-Dine et al, 2001;Xinwei, 2006;Yang et al, 2005) have quantified the 40 K, U-nat, and 232 Th activity concentrations, in Bq/kg, in specific stones and other building materials. In order to estimate the health risks, these studies commonly provide the values of various hazard indices (Beretka and Matthew, 1985;Malanca et al, 1993;Hayumbu et al, 1995), and/or the dose rates at a distance above a large area of the material using the UNSCEAR scale factors (Beck, 1972;Kohshi et al, 2001;UNSCEAR, 1988;UNSCEAR, 1...…”