Chemical characterization and radiation exposure from the natural radioactivity in Romanian building materials

Abstract

Abstract Buildings materials contain natural primordial radionuclides of 40K, 232Th and 226Ra (238U). The research measures activity concentrations of 40K, 232Th and 226Ra in different types of raw materials with different origins: volcanic, calcareous, zirconium minerals, silico-aluminous etc., used in Romanian building industry. This is important as these materials lead to an exposure of the public and workers from their ionizing radiations. Based on these activity concentrations an estimation of the radiological hazard is also made by analyzing radiological parameters such as radium equivalent activity (Ra eq), absorbed dose (D), annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), external hazard index (H ex), internal hazard index (H in), gamma and alpha index and dose criterion. Important conclusions can be drawn from the analysis of these indexes in respect with the radiological hazard for the population health by using these materials. Most of materials measured in this work showed fairly low levels of radioactivity.