Comparison of Northern Ireland radon maps based on indoor radon measurements and geology with maps derived by predictive modelling of airborne radiometric and ground permeability data

Publicly available information about radon potential in Northern Ireland is currently based on indoor radon results averaged over 1-km grid squares, an approach that does not take into account the geological origin of the radon. This study describes a spatially more accurate estimate of the radon potential of Northern Ireland using an integrated radon potential mapping method based on indoor radon measurements and geology that was originally developed for mapping radon potential in England and Wales. A refinement of this method was also investigated using linear regression analysis of a selection of relevant airborne and soil geochemical parameters from the Tellus Project. The most significant independent variables were found to be eU, a parameter derived from airborne gamma spectrometry measurements of radon decay products in the top layer of soil and exposed bedrock, and the permeability of the ground. The radon potential map generated from the Tellus data agrees in many respects with the map based on indoor radon data and geology but there are several areas where radon potential predicted from the airborne radiometric and permeability data is substantially lower. This under-prediction could be caused by the radon concentration being lower in the top 30 cm of the soil than at greater depth, because of the loss of radon from the surface rocks and soils to air.     

Radon and radon daughter evaluation in a natural radioactivity survey indoors

An indoor survey in order to estimate the population exposure in five towns of an Italian Region is presented. A particular methodology for the campaign was planned and is being applied. Gamma spectrometry of building materials, exposure rate measurements indoors and outdoors and radon concentration measurements indoors were taken with different techniques. A correlation was found between mean gamma exposure rate and mean radon concentration in the houses investigated. An evaluation of mean effective dose equivalents for the inhabitants of the five towns is reported.     

Radon risk mapping in southern Belgium: an application of geostatistical and GIS techniques

A data set of long-term radon measurements in approximately 2200 houses in southern Belgium has been collected in an on-going national radon survey. The spatial variation of indoor Rn concentrations is modelled by variograms. A radon distribution map is produced using the log-normal kriging technique. A GIS is used to digitise, process and integrate a variety of data, including geological maps, Rn concentrations associated with house locations and an administrative map, etc. It also allows evaluation of the relationships between various spatial data sets with the goal of producing radon risk maps. Based on geostatistical mapping and spatial analysis, we define three categories of risk areas: high risk, medium risk and low risk area. The correlation between radon concentrations and geological features is proved in this study. High and medium Rn risk zones are dominantly situated in bedrock from the Cambrian to Lower Devonian, although a few medium risk zones are within the Jurassic. It is evident that high-risk zones are related to a strongly folded and fractured context.     

Geological controls to the indoor radon distribution in southern Belgium

Soils and rocks are the predominant source of indoor radon (Rn) in southern Belgium. We have studied the correlations between geological features and indoor Rn concentrations using an indoor Rn data set of approx. 1700 short-term measurements. The sediments in the study region are divided into 11 geological series or 43 stages and 16 rock types. The results show a striking relation between indoor Rn concentration and the geological factors.     

Experience from retrospective radon exposure estimations for individuals in a radon epidemiological study using solid-state nuclear track detectors

The relation between increased risk of lung cancer and exposure to indoor radon is assessed in epidemiological studies. Both the quality and reliability of smoking data and the radon exposure data are of primary importance. Contemporary measurement of radon concentration in the dwellings of individuals in a case-control study is traditionally used to assess past history of radon exposure. These assessments are somewhat unreliable since presently measured radon concentration might not be representative for a given location long ago. The measurement of long-lived decay products from 222Rn remaining indoors on hard surfaces, such as glass, makes it possible to assess the exposure to indoor radon. At the Swedish Radiation Protection Institute, a combination of two different solid-state nuclear track detectors has been developed to assess the 210Pb activity implanted in glass surfaces by measuring 210Po alpha activity. This detector (a RETRO detector) is used in the Swedish radon epidemiological case-control study of non-smokers with the aim to provide an alternative estimate of individual radon exposure and to evaluate the usefulness of RETRO measurements. A total of 576 different objects were found and 568 were measured. For 225 individuals, we measured two personal objects that had been in the same person's possession for more than 20 years. The standard deviation of the average radon concentration obtained from these two objects had a median value of 13 Bq/m3 indicating a precision of exposure of approximately 20%. The correlation between 210Po surface activity measured earlier and the mean values of radon concentrations in a number of Swedish dwellings is used to estimate the historical, average radon concentration. This average correlation factor seems also to be valid for measurements in the non-smoker epidemiological study.     

The Iowa radon lung cancer study--phase I: Residential radon gas exposure and lung cancer

Exposure to high concentrations of radon (222Rn) progeny produces lung cancer in both underground miners and experimentally-exposed laboratory animals. The goal of the study was to determine whether or not residential radon exposure exhibits a statistically significant association with lung cancer in a state with high residential radon concentrations. A population-based, case-control epidemiologic study was conducted examining the relationship between residential radon gas exposure and lung cancer in Iowa females who occupied their current home for at least 20 years. The study included 413 incident lung cancer cases and 614 age-frequency-matched controls. Participant information was obtained by a mailed-out questionnaire with face-to-face follow-up. Radon dosimetry assessment consisted of five components: (1) on-site residential assessment survey; (2) on-site radon measurements; (3) regional outdoor radon measurements; (4) assessment of subjects' exposure when in another building; and (5) linkage of historic subject mobility with residential, outdoor, and other building radon concentrations. Histologic review was performed for 96% of the cases. Approximately 60% of the basement radon concentrations and 30% of the first floor radon concentrations of study participants' homes exceeded the US Environmental Protection Agency action level of 150 Bq m(-3) (4 pCi l(-1)). Large areas of western Iowa had outdoor radon concentrations comparable to the national average indoor value of 55 Bq m(-3) (1.5 pCi l(-1)). Excess odds of 0.24 (95% CI = -0.05-0.92) and 0.49 (95% CI = 0.03-1.84) per 11 WLM(5-19) were calculated using the continuous radon exposure estimates for all cases and live cases, respectively. Slightly higher excess odds of 0.50 (95% CI = 0.004-1.80) and 0.83 (CI = 0.11-3.34) per 11 WLM(5-19) were noted for the categorical radon exposure estimates for all cases and the live cases. A positive association between cumulative radon gas exposure and lung cancer was demonstrated using both categorical and continuous analyses. The risk estimates obtained in this study indicate that cumulative radon exposure presents an important environmental health hazard.     

室内氡污染的危害及防治

简要介绍了氡的产生和氡污染的来源以及室内氡浓度的影响因素,结合氡的物理化学性质分析了室内氡污染对人体健康的危害,并针对室内氡污染的来源具体阐述了室内氡污染的控制措施和治理方法,以期创造健康的室内环境。     

A geostatistical autopsy of the Austrian indoor radon survey (1992-2002)

Indoor radon (Rn) concentrations have been measured intensively in many countries to assess the burden of diseases associated with exposure to this radioactive gas. So-called radon-risk maps have consequently been produced to delineate areas with high levels. Geostatistical techniques are commonly used nowadays to map a range of environmental variables, in particular to generate probability maps of exceeding a given threshold. However, very few case studies in which indoor radon measurements have been investigated using geostatistical techniques have been published so far. By analyzing around 12,000 Rn measurements made in Austrian ground floors during a 10-year survey, we aim here to review and discuss the potential of geostatistics for mapping an environmental variable that shows very strong local variability. In particular, we show how kriging of the scale components can shed new light on various factors that affect the very high spatial variability of the variable.     

Correlations between radon concentration and indoor gamma dose rate, soil permeability and dwelling substructure and ventilation

Correlations between radon concentration and indoor gamma dose rate, soil permeability and dwelling substructure and ventilation were studied using data from 84 low rise residential houses collected in an area of enhanced indoor radon concentration. The radon concentrations varied from 30 to > 5000 Bq m(-3). Cross-tabulation, comparisons of means and multiplicative models were used to test the significance of the effects. In this study a quite high percentage of explained variation R2 (68%) was found. It was found that the most important factors were the substructure and the permeability of the soil. Due to the rather small sample size and moderate variation in the uranium content of the bedrock of the area, the effect of the indoor gamma dose rate was not so prominent. The effects of ventilation habits and sleeping with open windows were not detected in this study.     

In situ gamma spectroscopy to characterize building materials as radon and thoron sources

In situ gamma spectroscopy is widely utilized to determine the outdoor gamma dose rate from the soil and to calculate the natural and artificial radionuclide concentration and their contribution to the dose rate. The application of in situ gamma spectroscopy in indoor environments can not supply quantitative information about activity concentration of radionuclides in building materials, but this technique can provide interesting information about building materials as radon source. In fact, a method based on analyses of gamma spectra data has been developed by the authors to provide, in field, quantitative estimation of disequilibrium in 226Ra and 228Ac sub-chains due to 222Rn and 220Rn exhalation. The method has been applied to data of gamma spectroscopy measurements carried out with HPGe detector (26%) in seven dwellings and one office in Rome. The first results of the data analysis show that, as regards especially the 226Ra sub-chain disequilibrium, different building materials (tuff, concrete, etc.) can show very different characteristics. If, in addition to the spectrometric data, other indoor environment parameters (indoor gamma dose rates, room dimensions, wall thickness, etc.) (Bochicchio et al., Radiat Prot Dosim 1994;56(1-4):137-140; Bochicchio et al., Environ Int 1996a;22:S633-S639) are utilized in a room model, an evaluation of 226Ra, 228Ac and 40K activity concentration and an indication of the exhalation features, by means of estimation of exhaled 222Rn activity concentration, can be achieved.     

Mapping the geogenic radon potential in Germany

Mapping the geogenic radon potential in Germany is a research project initiated by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Conservation and Reactor Safety. The project was aimed to develop a standard methodology for the estimation of a geogenic radon potential and to apply this method to map the region of Germany as an overview for planning purposes. The regionalisation results from a distance-weighted interpolation of the site-specific values of radon concentration in soil gas and in situ gas permeability of soils on a regular grid considering the corresponding geological units. The map of Germany in a scale of 1:2 million is based on the radon concentration in soil gas as an estimator of the geogenic radon potential assuming the 'worst case' of uniform highest permeability. The distribution is subdivided into categories of low (< 10 kBq/m3), medium (10-100 kBq/m3), increased (100-500 kBq/m3) and high (> 500 kBq/m3) radon concentration. High values occur especially in regions with granites and basement rocks of Paleozoic age, and are proven by measurements in 0.03% of the total area. Many of these regions are also known for their enhanced indoor values. The class with increased values takes a portion of 7.86% and likewise occurs mainly in regions with outcrops of folded and metamorphic basement, but also of some Meso- and Cenozoic sediments with increased uranium contents and/or higher emanation coefficients. For 67.3% of the country, the radon concentration is classified as 'medium', and an assignment to specific geological units cannot be made at the map scale considered. Low radon contents, where protective measures against radon are usually not considered, are found in the geologically rather homogeneous part of northern Germany with unconsolidated Cenozoic sediments, covering approximately 25% of the total country. It is of course not possible to predict the indoor radon concentration of single houses from these maps, because construction type and structural fabric of houses are essentially governing the extent to which subsoil radon potential affects the indoor concentration. Besides this, in places with site-specific geochemical, structural and soil-physical properties, local radon anomalies may occur which were not recorded in the course of the wide-meshed screening study.     

Coping with radon problem in a private house

In one of the 50 houses in which, during a national radon survey of 1000 homes in Slovenia, indoor radon concentrations exceeded 1000 Bq m⁻³, radon was further investigated. Except in the attic, elevated radon concentrations were found everywhere in the home, ranging from 0.5 to 12 kBq m⁻³. Applying ICRP 65 methodology, an annual effective dose in the range from 9 to 35 mSv was estimated for an inhabitant for different exposure scenarios. The radon problem was successfully mitigated and radon concentration reduced below 200 Bq m⁻³.     

Comparison of retrospective and contemporary indoor radon measurements in a high-radon area of Serbia

In Niska Banja, Serbia, which is a high-radon area, a comparison was made between two retrospective radon measuring methods and contemporary radon measurements. The two retrospective methods derive the radon concentrations that occurred in dwellings over longer periods in the past, based on the amount of trapped (210)Po on the surface of glass objects (surface traps, ST) or in the bulk of porous materials (volume traps, VT). Both surface implanted (210)Po in glass objects and contemporary radon in air were measured in 46 rooms, distributed in 32 houses of this radon spa-town, using a dual alpha track detector configuration (CR-39 and LR115) and CR-39 track etched detectors, respectively. In addition to the use of surface trap measurements, in 18 rooms (distributed in 15 houses) VT samples of suitable material were also collected, allowing to compare ST and VT retrospective radon concentration estimates. For each room, contemporary annual radon concentrations (CONT) were measured or estimated using seasonal correction factors. The distribution of the radon concentration in all data sets was found to be close to lognormal (Chi-square test>0.05). Geometric means (GM) are similar, ranging from 1040 to 1380 Bq m(-3), whereas geometric standard deviations (GSD) for both the retrospective methods are greater than for the CONT method, showing reasonable agreement between VT, ST and CONT measurements. A regression analysis, with respect to the lognormal distribution of each data set, shows that for VT-ST the correlation coefficient r is 0.85, for VT-CONT r is 0.82 and for ST-CONT r is 0.73. Comparison of retrospective and contemporary radon concentrations with regard to supposed long-term indoor radon changes further supports the principal agreement between the retrospective and conventional methods.     

A comparison of calculated indoor radiation exposure with the results of measurements

A model has been developed for the calculation of external and internal radiation exposure of the population in dwellings. The model consists of two adjacent rooms on top of a crawl-space. The indoor gamma ray exposure rates and the radon concentrations in indoor air, predicted for a variety of conditions, are compared with observations. Predictions and observations are in reasonable agreement; for the radon concentration the predictions may be around 40% too low.     

Spatial indoor radon distribution in Mexico City

We present a spatial analysis of residential radon concentrations in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area, which we intend to use to assign radon exposure in an ongoing case-control study. As part of a probabilistic household survey, carried out between May and June 1999, 501 dwellings were selected for indoor placement of solid state nuclear track detectors (LR 115) in a cup array over a period of approximately 90 days. As part of the sampling design, the city was grid partitioned into nine zones and a sample of dwellings was selected in each zone. All zones were simultaneously surveyed. The stratified sampling design allowed us to obtain radon geometric means, adjusted for household characteristics, week of detector placement and number of days of measurement for these zones. Additionally, adjusted geometric means were estimated for the 100 census tracts surveyed and this information was used to obtain a more detailed spatial distribution of residential radon levels through kriging interpolation and surface contouring. Radon levels depended on the room of placement, the floor level and the ventilation habits but not on building materials. Regarding the city zone, the highest adjusted geometric mean was found in the southwest (136 Bqm(-3)), where 46% of the households had an estimated radon level in excess of 200 Bqm(-3). In the rest of the city, the geometric mean concentration ranged between 41 and 98 Bqm(-3). A more detailed spatial distribution showed that, in general, most of the eastern and middle zones of the city had estimated radon geometric means below 74 Bqm(-3), while the western ones had geometric means above this concentration. Very high geometric means, exceeding 111 Bqm(-3) and even reaching 288 Bqm(-3), are estimated for some areas located in the southern and western zones of Mexico City. The obtained spatial distribution shows that the areas with very high estimated residential radon concentrations are close to inactive volcanic mountains. We believe that the geo-statistical techniques, we have used, offer reasonably good estimates of the average spatial residential radon distribution in Mexico City under average ventilation in homes. The use of this indirect approach for radon exposure measurement in epidemiological studies is an inexpensive alternative to direct radon exposure measurement but may be subject to non-differential misclassification error. The effect of such error on the detection of a real increase in lung cancer risk from indoor radon remains to be determined.     

室内空气中氡的危害和控制

针对我国室内空气中氡的实际情况，从氡的理性特征、来源水平、危害几方面进行了论述，介绍了世界各国对室内氡的控制标准，提出了控制室内空气中氡的有效方法。     

Home energy efficiency and radon: An observational study

Exposure to radon gas is the second leading cause of lung cancer worldwide behind smoking. Changing the energy characteristics of a dwelling can influence both its thermal and ventilative properties, which can affect indoor air quality. This study uses radon measurements made in 470 689 UK homes between 1980 and 2015, linked to dwelling information contained within the Home Energy Efficiency Database (HEED). The linked dataset, the largest of its kind, was used to analyze the association of housing and energy performance characteristics with indoor radon concentrations in the UK. The findings show that energy efficiency measures that increase the airtightness of properties are observed to have an adverse association with indoor radon levels. Homes with double glazing installed had radon measurements with a significantly higher geometric mean, 67% (95% CI: 44, 89) greater than those without a recorded fabric retrofit. Those with loft insulation (47%, 95% CI: 26, 69) and wall insulation (32%, 95% CI: 11, 53) were also found to have higher radon readings. Improving the energy performance of the UK's housing stock is vital in meeting carbon emission reduction targets. However, compromising indoor air quality must be avoided through careful assessment and implementation practices.     

室内氡的危害及控制措施

介绍了氡的性质以及室内氡的主要来源，特别强调了氡对人体的危害，进而介绍了国内室内氡浓度控制的规范与标准，并根据国家标准和它的四大来源，提出了相应的解决办法和防治措施，如不要将居民住宅建造在地质断裂带或工业废渣堆场上，选择符合国家标准的建筑材料来装修等，以保证人的身体健康。     

Modeling ventilation and radon in new Dutch dwellings

Indoor radon concentrations were estimated for various ventilation conditions, the differences being mainly related to the airtightness of the dwelling and the ventilation behavior of its occupants. The estimations were aimed at describing the variation in air change rates and radon concentrations to be expected in the representative newly built Dutch dwellings and identifying the most important parameters determining air change rate and indoor radon concentration. The model estimations were compared with measurements. Most of the air was predicted to enter the model dwelling through leaks in the building shell, independent of the ventilation conditions of the dwelling. Opening the air inlets was shown to be an efficient way to increase infiltration and thus to decrease radon concentration. The effect of increasing the mechanical ventilation rate was considerably less than opening the air inlets. The mechanical ventilation sets the lower limit to the air change rate of the dwelling, and is effective in reducing the radon concentration when natural infiltration is low. Opening inside doors proved to be effective in preventing peak concentrations in poorly ventilated rooms. As the airtightness of newly built dwellings is still being improved, higher radon concentrations are to be expected in the near future and the effect of occupant behavior on indoor radon concentrations is likely to increase. According to the model estimations soil-borne radon played a moderate role, which is in line with measurements.     

Population dose in the vicinity of old Spanish uranium mines

Regional surveys were conducted to determine exposure to natural sources of radiation for people in the vicinity of old Spanish uranium mines. The surveys evaluated indoor radon concentrations and outdoor and indoor external gamma dose rates. Indoor radon concentrations were measured in 222 dwellings by means of nuclear track-etched detectors. The terrestrial gamma ray dose rate was measured outdoors and indoors at a total of 256 points and 115 points, respectively. Estimates mean annual effective doses for the six areas studied ranged from 3.2 to 5.1 mSv per year, which is between 1.2 and 2 times higher than the average national value.