Suitability of Quaternary Sediments of Wadi Arar, Saudi Arabia, as Construction Materials: An Environmental Radioactivity Approach

Abstract

The surficial quaternary deposits of Wadi Arar were radioactively evaluated for construction purposes. The concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K were used to evaluate the radioactive suitability of Wadi Arar. Gamma-spectrometry technique with an HPGe detector was used to measure the concentrations of Ra, Th, and K. The average specific activities of Ra, Th, and K were 22.92, 16.99, and 223.66Bq/kg respectively. The average value of the air absorbed dose rate (D) was 30.47nGy/h. The average values of the indoor and outdoor annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE) were 149.46 and 37.36μSv/y respectively. The average value of the radium equivalent activity index (Raeq) was 64.44Bq/kg. The maximum values of the external and internal hazard index (H) were 0.20 and 0.27 respectively. Radioactivity concentration and hazard index values are within the acceptable global values and do not pose any significant radiological threat to the population. These results reflect the safety of Wadi Arar as a site for construction and the potential to use depositional sediments at the site as construction materials.