Radon and Thoron Exhalation Rate in the soil of Western Haryana, India

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-2193774/v1

Download PDF

Research Article

Radon and Thoron Exhalation Rate in the soil of Western Haryana, India

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-2193774/v1

This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License

Journal Publication

published 29 Mar, 2023

Read the published version in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment →

You are reading this latest preprint version

This study, reports the exhalation rates of radon and thoron from surface soil collected from 60 rural sites of district Hisar, Haryana, India. The exhalation rates of Rn²²² (Radon)& Rn²²⁰(Thoron) were measured by portable SMART RnDuo (AQTEK SYSTEMS) using a mass accumulation chamber which is equipped with a scintillation material coated cell. Dose rate due to Natural gamma radiations ranged 0.526 to 1.139 mSv y^− 1. The Rn²²²mass exhalation rate in soil samples varied from 0.14 to 94.65 mBq kg^− 1 h^− 1. Thoron surface exhalation rates ranged 46.42 to 619.88 mBq m^− 2 h^− 1. This study give an idea about the differences in Rn²²² & Rn²²⁰ exhalation at different locations which may be due to variations in geological structure of the locations and characteristics of the top soil.The findings show that using soil of the study area as building material is safe.

SMART RnDuo

Exhalation rate

Radon

Thoron

Dose rate

Rn222 & Rn220

All environmental matrices, including soil, rocks, water, air, and living tissues, have natural radioactivity (Rangaswamy et al., 2016). Gamma radiations produced by naturally originated radioactive elements and cosmic rays are major sources of natural radiation dose (UNSCEAR, 2000). Terrestrial gamma radiations originate from ²³⁸U, ²³²Th series and ⁴⁰K, which are naturally present in the earth’s crust (Poschl and Nollet, 2006; Rosskopfova, 2011). Other than these radionuclides, Radon and Thoron are the gaseous radioactive elements which significantly contribute to natural radiation dose. Radon gas is chemically inert but has great importance being a radiological pollutant. It has a short half-life of 3.82 days and decays to ²¹⁸Po, ²¹⁴Pb,²¹⁰Pb, etc (Porstendörfer, 1994; Prasad et al., 2012). Thoron has a very short half-life time of 55.4 sec and further decays into a radioactive product.

Inhaling Radon and its short-lived daughter radionuclides cause internal exposure and may cause radiation diseases (Thangam et al., 2020). These progenies are high-energy alpha emitters (8.87 MeV, ²¹²Po), and atoms of heavy elements in the solid state get attached to the aerosols and enter the lungs through the respiratory system damaging the inner cells of the respiratory system, which may cause lung cancer. Due to fallout, radon and its daughter products can deposit in every matrix, viz., water, soil and vegetation. These radionuclides, along with essential nutrients, are taken up by plants and enter into food chains and consumed by human beings through different food items. Long-term inhalation of radon isotopes has several health effects, including acute leucopenia, anaemia, and mouth necrosis. It can potentially cause bone, cranial and nasal tumours, cancers of the lungs, pancreas, liver, bone, and kidneys, as well as leukaemia (Kang et al., 2019).

Radon is continuously produced by its parent nuclei in water, rocks, and soil (Panghal et al.,2017). Terrestrial background radiation levels depend on the rock types from which the soils are formed (Song, 2012). The high radiation intensity is usually associated with igneous rocks and lesser intensity with sedimentary rocks (Joel et al., 2018). The generated radon and thoron swap out from rocks during the physical and/or chemical breakdown of these rocks, and radioactive gas exhales from grains and spreads through the soil pores (Panghal et al., 2018). The factors which play an important role in the escape of gas from the surface are (a) momentum gained by gas atoms during breakdown and (b) diffusion coefficient of gas for that material. This escaping out of radon is controlled by several physical parameters like temperature, water content, barometric pressure, and soil permeability. The Emanation coefficient also affects the exhalation rate of gas. Its value depends on the soil's particle size, porosity, geometry and moisture content in the soil. Thus it can be inferred that radon levels primarily depend on the soil nature. Radon concentration in the soil and transportation of radon gas from the soil are also affected by the water concentration in the soil. Moisture has an antagonistic effect on the adsorption of radon atoms at sites; hence sudden increase in the release of radon gas at a site can be related to the soil's moisture level (Arvela et al. 2016). Temperature also affects the exhalation of Rn²²² and Rn²²⁰ from the soil, rocks, and other surfaces. Temperature increases the probability of leaving the site by an atom which results in a sudden thrust in their concentration in the environment.

The materials used in architecture, dweller lifestyles, geology, and meteorological surroundings of a particular region all affect the indoor accumulation of radon and thoron gases. It is believed that radon and its progeny add more to the radiation dose than thoron. However, several extensive investigations around the world during the last few decades have suggested that the thoron adds significantly to the inhalation dosage if the thorium level is higher in building materials and local geology. Over the past few decades, attention has been given to tracking natural radioactivity. Several researchers have studied natural radioactivity and exhalation rates in different parts of India (Panghal et al., 2018; Singh et al., 2020; Daulta et al 2019, Kumar et al, 2014). In this study, radon mass and thoron surface exhalation rates in soil were studied in the residential areas of Hisar district, Haryana. This study may benefit society as it gives an idea of the natural background radiation in the area. The gamma level in the air provides a picture of the radiation present in the aerosol. In contrast, the surface exhalation rate for radon and thoron will give the data for the contribution of soil to indoor radon and thoron concentration.

2.1. Study Area

The study area is district Hisar of Haryana state, a part of North-western India, and is located 164 km West of National Capital, New Delhi. Its coordinates are 29⁰09'06.69"N and 75⁰43'16.04"E, and the mean elevation from sea level is 215m. Hisar district has 06 Tehsils (local administrative units), Hisar, Hansi, Bass, Narnaund, Barwala, and Uklana, and 269 villages. This area is part of alluvial Ghaggar -Yamuna plain. The research area is located in Haryana State's western bulge. Its edges are the Jind district to the northeast and the Fatehabad district to the northwest. A small piece of Rohtak district touches its south-eastern part, and Rajasthan is located in the southwest. In the south Bhiwani district makes a boundary with the district. The forest covers mainly the northern and eastern parts of the study area. There is a remarkable transition to the desert in its southern and western portions. The region is mapped on Delhi-Lahore Ridge on the tectonic map, which is bounded by thrusts and no earthquake or any major disaster has occurred in this zone in the past. Sierozem, Arid Brown solonized, and Aeolian soils are the three main types of soil in the research region. This study area is intensively cultivated, and wheat-cotton is the primary crop cycle. People apply NPK fertilizers and various pesticides to sustain crop yield.

2.2. Experimental

Gamma dose level, rate of surface, and mass exhalation were quantified at 60 sampling stations established in the study area. The site map depicting the sampling locations is given in Figure-1. Sampling locations were selected using a grid of 5km×5km to have uniformly distributed sampling locations. The soil samples were collected with the help of an augur up to the depth of 20 cm after removing the surface soil. The collected samples were stored in zip-locked plastic bags. Surface soil was removed to minimize the effect of metrology. The gamma radiation level in the air was monitored at one meter above the ground height using a µR gamma survey meter (Model No PRM 121S). The Gamma survey meter’s minimum detection limit (MDL) is 1.0 µR/hr. To dampen the influence of water content on measurement, the soil samples were kept in a hot air oven at 110°C for 12 h. The dried samples were analyzed using SmartRnDuo, AQTEK System, developed by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai, India, based on ZnS(Ag) scintillation technology.

The limitation of the study is that no data is available on the radon gas in the region to compare the results.

2.2.1 Radon Mass Exhalation Rate

The mass exhalation rate quantifies the discharge pace of radon per unit mass per unit time. The radon concentration build-up in the chamber is monitored in SMART RnDuo at regular one-hour intervals using a smart algorithm provided in the microcontroller. The counts for each interval are stored as radon activity concentration. In radon measurement mode, diffusive sampling by the pinhole suspends the entry of ²²⁰Rn at the detector's inlet. Eq. 1 was used to calculate the radon mass exhalation rate (Sahoo et al., 2007)

$$C\left(t\right)=\frac{{J}_{m}M}{V{\lambda }_{e}}\left(1-{e}^{-{\lambda }_{e}t}\right)+{C}_{0}{e}^{-{\lambda }_{e}t}$$

Where J_m=Radon mass exhalation rate in (Bq/kg/h)

M = Mass (kg) of soil sample

V = Effective air volume of the chamber + scintillation cell

λ_e = Effective decay constant(a total of ²²²Rn decay constant and any chamber leakage rate if exists).

C₀₌Radon concentration at t = 0.

2.2.2 Thoron Surface Exhalation Rate

Thoron (²²⁰Rn) quantification was done using flow mode sampler attached to the monitor's pump inlet. In this case, a 15-minute cycle yields a measure of thoron and background, followed by a 5-minute hold-up to ensure near-complete decay of thoron, and finally, a final 5-minute count yields the number of background counts for that cycle.

The ²²⁰Rn surface exhalation rate (J_st) (Bq/m²/s) in soil samples was calculated using the Eq. 2 (Kanse et al.,2013; Sahoo et al., 2014):

$${J}_{st}={C}_{T}\frac{V\lambda }{A}$$

V = Residual air volume (m³) enclosed by the loop

λ=²²⁰Rn decay constant (0.012464 s^− 1)

A = Surface area (m²) of the sample.

C_T= equilibrium concentration of thoron (Bq/m³) inside the chamber

The contamination from radioactive decay of radon and thoron gases among different sources of artificial and anthropogenic background radiation accounts for about 55% of the exposure. These radioactive components attach to airborne particles and may be retained in the lungs(UNSCEAR, 2000; ICRP, 2014; Mehra et al., 2016). Exhalation and emanation cycles cause radon and thoron gases to transit from their respective isotopes (found in soil or building materials) to the interior environment, resulting in radiation exposure to the public (Butterweck et al. 2002). Multiple seasonal variance data of radon, thoron, and other related contributing factors are limited in India, and these variables have been given lesser attention in investigations of radiological elements. Thoron’s impact on actual radiation dose is smaller; therefore, most studies have neglected its estimations. Experiments in several countries have revealed that thoron and its daughter ²¹²Pb, which has a half-life of 10.6 hours, may not aggregate to deadly amounts in the air (Guo and Cheng, 2005; Ramola, 2016).

Dose rate due to natural gamma levels in air ranged from 0.526 to1.139 mSv y^-1having a mean value of 0.756 mSv y^-1. The outcomes show that the mass exhalation rate varies significantly at different locations in the study area. The surface exhalation rate in the studied samples varied from 0.14 to 94.65 mBq kg^-1 h^-1with a mean value of 20.65 mBq kg^-1 h^-1 (Table 1). 4.2% samples have a higher value of mass exhalation rate than the global average value i.e. 57 mBq kg^-1 h^-1. The variation in exhalation depends on several factors such as soil type, parent nuclei content, emanation factor and radon diffusion coefficient. Mass exhalation rate was higher at Sotha village ( 94.65 mBq kg^-1 h^-1) and Kirmara village (86.27 mBq kg^-1 h^-1), while minimum at Nangthala village (0.14 mBq kg^-1 h^-1) (Table 1). The mass exhalation rate may be higher due to the presence of radon gas in the soil, which may be due to the deposition of fly ash from a nearby thermal Power Plant. Flyash from the power plant continuously gets mixed with the soil of the nearby region by different physical processes, which may increase the radium level in the soil (Chauhan et al. 2001). Due to radium contamination in soil, radon concentration gets higher in the soil. Radon is the decay product of radium, so there is a significant positive correlation between them which has been reported elsewhere (Pisapak et al. 2017; Chauhan et al. 2001). Uranium may also migrate from deeper soil horizons to the O-horizon with the help of phosphate fertilizers and some other micronutrients, which may increase the radium concentration in the soil. It may be another plausible reason for a higher concentration of mass exhalation rate than average in the study area.

The mass exhalation rate in the study area has been compared with available literature. It was found to be higher in the study area than in Northern Rajasthan; Karnal, Haryana; Mohali, Punjab; Kolhapur, Maharashtra [Duggal et al. (2015), Devi et al. (2020), Mehta et al. (2015), Raste et al. (2020) ]. In comparison, it was found to be almost equal to Amritsar and Tarn-taran, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh [Kaur et al. (2018), Parminder Singh et al. (2015)]. The mass exhalation rate in the study area is lesser than in Kumaun, Himalayas; Uttarakhand and Faridabad, Haryana; central Haryana [Kumar et al. (2021), Anamika et al., (2020), Singh et al., (2020), Panghal et al. (2018)] (Table 3).

The study area’s Thoron surface exhalation rate ranged from 46.42 to 619.88 mBq m^-2 h^-1, with an arithmetic mean 161.73 mBq m^-2 h^-1(Table 1), which is much lower than the global average value i. e. 3600 Bq m^-2 h^-1. All studied values were below the global average value. An extensive deviation in thoron surface exhalation rate may be due to the geology and ecology of the study area. The sampling sites may have unrelated geometries and soil structures that influence the thoron exhalation rate of the soil sample. The maximum Thoron surface exhalation rate was observed in a sample collected at Bhojraj village (619.88 mBq m^-2h^-1) while the lowest in the sample collected from village Adampur (46.42 mBq m^-2h^-1) (Table 1). The elevated concentration of ²²⁰Rn could be because of significant thorium activity at the sampling locations. The adjoining region of the sampling locations is the Aravali hills mining area (Tosham and Khanak). Surface exhalation rate contributes to indoor thoron concentration. In this region, the soil is widely used as a construction material so that a higher exhalation rate can contribute to a higher annual dose rate for the residents (Kumar et al. 2014). The selection of soil for the construction of houses is an essential parameter for reducing the radiation level in dwellings.

The surface exhalation rate obtained in this study has been compared with available literature. It was found to be higher than in Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh; Ambala, Haryana; Mohali, Punjab; Khasi Hills, Meghalaya [Singh et al. (2015), Mehta and Shikha et al. (2016), Mehta et al. (2015), Pyngrope et al. (2022)] while it is almost equal to Kurukshetra, Haryana [Chauhan and Chakarvarti et al. (2002)]. The values are lesser than Kamaun, Himalaya; Uttarakhand, Faridabad, Haryana; central Haryana [Kumar et al. (2021), Anamika et al. (2020), Singh et al. (2020), Panghal et al. (2018] respectively (Table 3).

Figure 2(A) indicates that data distribution of overall gamma dose rate in the air is not consistent, while it is almost consistent for radon mass exhalation rate (Fig 3(A)). The histograms for the gamma dose rate and radon mass exhalation rate are slightly right-skewed and unimodal, which is clear from the thick tail for lower values as compared to the thin tail for higher values. Although skewed to the right, the histogram for thoron surface exhalation rate was distorted unimodal. The adverse impact of outlier values results in distorted unimodal distribution. The skewness and kurtosis values of gamma dose rate, mass exhalation rate and surface exhalation rate (Table 2) indicate that histogram tails are shorter and thinner, and central peaks are frequently lower and not sharp. This distribution is called platykurtic, where several figures are larger than the mode. It may be because some outlier values are on the higher side. The tail section may act as an outlier for the statistical model, and outliers have an unfavourable impact on the model’s presentation, particularly in regression-based models. This shape signifies that several figures are larger than the mode, possibly outliers. This is also supported by Box Plot (Figure 2(B), 3(B), 4(B)). The normal Q-Q plot (Figure 2(C)) showed that data of gamma dose rate in air is scattered almost symmetrical around the reference line with discontinuity. Asymmetrical radon mass exhalation rate and thoron surface exhalation rate distributions in the study area are also depicted by the normal Q-Q plot [Figure 3(C), 4(C)] where the scatter plot crosses the reference line two times.

The distribution of radon mass exhalation rate and thoron surface exhalation rate of soil samples vs outdoor gamma dose rate is given in Figure. 5. It is evident from the 3D scatter plot that there is not much effect on the dose rate with increasing concentrations of Rn²²²and Rn²²⁰. The dose level changes most of the time arbitrarily. As a result, a weak positive correlation was seen between the outdoor gamma dose rate and the Rn²²²mass exhalation rate, with R² = 0.01 and R² = 0.01 for the outdoor gamma dose rate and Rn²²⁰surface exhalation rate. Thus an insignificant relationship was formed between the gamma dose rate from decay products and the radon/thoron exhalation rates.

The study areas’ radon and thoron exhalation rates varied greatly (0.14 to 94.65 mBq kg^− 1 h^− 1and 46.42 to 619.88 mBq m^− 2 h^− 1, respectively) and were randomly distributed. Such a wide range of exhalation rates in a small region can be attributed to the variations in soil composition within the sampling area. Gamma Dose rate due to natural radioactivity level in air ranged between 0.526 and 1.139 mSv y^− 1. The geometric mean values in the present study are0.75 mSv y^− 1, 9.23 mBq kg^− 1 h^− 1 and 140.21mBq m^− 2 h^− 1for gamma dose rate in air, radon mass exhalation rate and thoron surface exhalation rate respectively. The future scope of the study is that now we have data related to exhalation rates of radon and thoron from the soil, which can act as baseline data if there are some plans to create a nuclear facility or any other facility in the area. This can help develop facilities in the area and design houses so that the dose to the public can be reduced as much as possible in accordance with other parameters.

Ethical approval: No prior ethical approval was necessary for the study.

Consent to participate: No human subjects included in the study. Consent not required.

Consent to publication: Not applicable

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

Funding: No funding was obtained for this study.

Availability of data: The authors have included all the relevant data and the source of freely available data in the manuscript.

Preprint server: The manuscript has been submitted to a preprint server prior to submission on RESB.

Authors contribution:

Shakuntala Rani: Conceptualization, methodology, Data curation, Writing - Original draft.

Rajender Singh Kundu: Supervision, Methodology, Resources, Writing - review & editing.

Vinod Kumar Garg: Conceptualization, Supervision, Resources, Writing - review & editing.

Balvinder Singh: Conceptualization, Methodology, Writing - Original draft.

Amanjeet Panghal: Conceptualization, Supervision, Writing - review & editing.

Neeraj Dilbaghi: Supervision, Resources, Writing - review & editing.

Anamika, K., Mehra, R., & Malik, P. (2020). Assessment of radiological impacts of natural radionuclides and radon exhalation rate measured in the soil samples of Himalayan foothills of Uttarakhand, India. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., 323(1), 263-274.
Arvela, H., Holmgren, O., and Hänninen, P. (2016) Effect of soil moisture on seasonal variation in indoor radon concentration: modelling and measurements in 326 Finnish housesRadiat. Prot. Dosim., 168(2), 277–290.
Butterweck, G. et al. (2002) Experimental determination rate of unattached radon progeny from the respiratory tract to blood. Radiat. Prot. Dosim., v.102, pp.343–348.
Chauhan R.P. and Chakarvarti, S.K. (2002) Radon exhalation rates from soils and stones as building materials, Indian J. Pure Appl. Phys., 40, 670-673.
Chauhan, R. P., Kant, K., Sharma, G. S., Mahesh, K. and Chakarvarti, S. K. (2001) Radon monitoring in coal, fly-ash, soil, water and environment of some thermal power plants in north India. Radiat. Prot. Environ., v.24(1-2), pp.371-374.
Daulta, R., Garg, V. K. and Singh, B. (2019) Natural radioactivity in soil, associated radiation exposure and cancer risk to the population of Eastern Haryana, India. Jour. Geol. Soc. India, v.94(5), pp.525-532.
Duggal, V., Mehra, R. and Rani, A. (2015) Study of radium and radon exhalation rate in soil samples from areas of Northern Rajasthan. Jour. Geol. Soc. India, v.86 (3), pp.331-336.
Guo, Q. and Cheng, J. (2005) Indoor thoron and radon concentrationsin Zhuhai, China. J. Nucl. Sci. Tech. 42, 588–591.
ICRP (International Commission on Radiological Protection) (2014) Radiological protection against radon exposure, ICRP publication – v.126, pp.43(3).
Joel, E. S., Maxwell, O., Adewoyin, O. O., Ehi-Eromosele, C. O., Embong, Z. and Saeed, M. A. (2018) Assessment of natural radionuclides and its radiological hazards from tiles made in Nigeria Radiat. Phys. Chem., v.144, pp.43-47.
Kang, J. K., Seo, S. and Jin, Y. W. (2019) Health effects of radon exposure. Yonsei Med. J., v.60(7), pp.597-603..
Kanse, S. D., Sahoo, B. K., Sapra, B. K., Gaware, J. J. and Mayya, Y. S. (2013) Powder sandwich technique: a novel method for determining the thoron emanation potential of powders bearing high 224Ra content. Radiat. Meas., v.48, pp.82-87.
Kaur, M., Kumar, A., Kaur, S. and Kaur, K. (2018) Assessment of radon/thoron exhalation rate in the soil samples of Amritsar and Tarn Taran district of Punjab state. Radiat. Prot. Environ., v.41 (4), pp.210.
Kumar, A., Chauhan, R. P., Joshi, M. and Sahoo, B. K. (2014) Modeling of indoor radon concentration from radon exhalation rates of building materials and validation through measurements. J. Environ. Radioact., v.127,pp.50-55.
Kumar, A., Singh, P., Semwal, P., Singh, K., Prasad, M. and Ramola, R. C. (2021) Study of primordial radionuclides and radon/thoron exhalation rates in Bageshwar region of Kumaun Himalaya, India. J. of Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.328(3), pp.361-1367.
Mehra, R., Jakhu, R., Bangotra, P., Kaur, K. and Mittal, H. M. (2016) Assessment of inhalation dose from indoor 222Rn and 220Rn using RAD7 and Pinhole cup dosimeters. Radiat. Prot. Dosim. v.171(2), pp.287–289.
Mehta, V. and Shikha D. (2016) Measurement of Radon Exhalation Rates from Soil Samples of Some Villages of Ambala, Haryana, Sch. J. Phys. Math. Stat., v.3 (2) pp-66-68.
Mehta, V., Singh, S. P., Chauhan, R. P. and Mudahar, G. S. (2015) Study of indoor radon, thoron, their progeny concentration and radon exhalation rate in the environs of Mohali, Punjab, Northern IndiaAerosol Air Qual. Res., v.15(4), pp.1380-1389.
Panghal, A., Kumar, A., Kumar, S., Singh, J., Sharma, S., Singh, P. and Bajwa, B. S. (2017) Radiation dose-dependent risk on individuals due to ingestion of uranium and radon concentration in drinking water samples of four districts of Haryana, India. Radiat. Eff. Defects Solids., v.172(5-6),pp.441-455.
Panghal, A., Kumar, A., Kumar, S., Singh, J., Singh, P. and Bajwa, B. S. (2018) Estimation of Natural Radionuclides and Exhalation Rate in Surface Soils of Four Districts of Haryana, India. Jour. Geol. Soc. India, v. 92(6), pp.695-703.
Pisapak, P., Todorovic, N. and Bhongsuwan, T. (2017) Correlation between radon and radium concentrations in soil and estimation of natural radiation hazards in Namom district, Songkhla province (Southern Thailand). Environ. Earth Sci., v.76(4), pp.1-11.
Porstendörfer, J. (1994) Properties and behaviour of radon and thoron and their decay products in the air. J. Aerosol Sci. v.25(2), pp.219–263.
Poschl, M. and Nollet, L. M.(Eds.). (2006) Radionuclide concentrations in food and the environment. CRC Press.
Prasad, G., Ishikawa, T., Hosoda, M., Sorimachi, A., Sahoo, S., Kavasi, N. and Uchida, S. (2012) Seasonal and diurnal variations of radon/thoron exhalation rate in Kanto-loam area in Japan. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.292(3),pp.1385-1390.
Pyngrope, A., Saxena, A., Khardewsaw, A., Sharma, Y. and Sahoo, B. K. (2022) Effect of soil’s porosity and moisture content on radon and thoron exhalation rates. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., pp1-10.Ramola, R C, Gusain, G S, Rautela B S, Sagar, D V, Prasad G, Sahoo, S K, Ishikawa T, Omori Y, Janil M, Sorimachi A, Tokonami S (2016) Levels of thoron and progeny in high background radiation area of southeastern coast of Odisha, India. Radiat. Prot. Dosim. v.152, pp.62–65.
Rangaswamy, D. R., Srilatha, M. C., Ningappa, C., Srinivasa, E. and Sannappa, J. (2016) Measurement of natural radioactivity and radiation hazards assessment in rock samples of Ramanagara and Tumkur districts, Karnataka, India. Environ. Earth Sci., v.75(5), pp.1-11.
Raste, P. M., Sahoo, B. K., Bakshi, A. K., Patra, A. C., Sathian, D., Beck, M. and Sonkawade, R. G. (2020) A study on natural radioactivity and potential of 222Rn, 220Rn exhalation from Deccan table land of Kolhapur district, Maharashtra, India. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.326(2), pp.1333-1341.
Rosskopfova, O., Galamboš, M. and Rajec, P. (2011) Determination of 63 Ni in the low level solid radioactive waste. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.289(1), pp.251-256.
Sahoo, B. K., Agarwal, T. K., Gaware, J. J. and Sapra, B. K. (2014) Thoron interference in radon exhalation rate measured by solid state nuclear track detector based can technique. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.302(3), pp.1417-1420.
Sahoo, B. K., Nathwani, D., Eappen, K. P., Ramachandran, T. V., Gaware, J. J. and Mayya, Y. S. (2007) Estimation of radon emanation factor in Indian building materials. Radiat. Meas., v.42(8), pp.1422-1425.
Shiroma, Y., Kina, S., Fujitani, T., Hosoda, M., Sorimachi, A., Ishikawa, T. and Furukawa, M. (2012) Characteristics of radon and thoron exhalation rates in Okinawa, subtropical region of Japan. Radiat. prot. dosim., v.152(1-3), pp.184-188.
Singh, B., Garg, V. K., Yadav, P., Kishore, N. and Pulhani, V. (2014) Uranium in groundwater from western Haryana, India. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.301(2), pp. 427-433.
Singh, B., Kant, K., Garg, M. and Sahoo, B. K. (2020) Quantification of radon/thoron exhalation rates of soil samples collected from district Faridabad of Southern Haryana, India. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.326(1), pp.831-843.
Song, G., Chen, D., Tang, Z., Zhang, Z. and Xie, W. (2012) Natural radioactivity levels in topsoil from the Pearl river delta zone, Guangdong, China. J. Environ. Radioact., v.103(1),pp.48-53.
Thangam, V., Rajalakshmi, A., Chandrasekaran, A. and Jananee, B. (2020) Radiometric analysis of some building materials using gamma-ray spectrometry. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., v.324(3), pp.1059-1067.
United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effect of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) (2000) Exposure due to Natural Radiation Sources, United Nations, New York.
UNSCEAR (2000) vol 1. Report to the General Assembly. UN, New York.
Singh, P., Singh, P., Bajwa, B. S., Singh, S. and Sahoo, B. K. (2015). Measurement of Indoor Radon, Thoron and their progeny concentrations in the dwellings of District Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh, India. Uranium-Past and Future Challenges pp. 649-656. Springer, Cham.
Singh J., Singh H., Singh S. and Bajwa B.S. (2009) Uranium, radium and radon exhalation studies in some soil samples using plastic track detectors, Indian J. Phys., v. 83(8), pp.1147-1153.
Mann, N., S. Kumar, A. Kumar., Chauhan R.P. and Garg A.K. (2014) Measurement of Radon Exhalation Rates in Soil Samples from Western Haryana, ISST J. Appl. Phys., v.5( 2), pp. 56-59.
Pundir A., Singh R. and Kamboj S. (2014) Measurement of Radon Concentration and Exhalation Rates in Soil Samples of some districts of Haryana and Himachal in India, Researcher, v.6(6),pp.71-76
Thakur, N., Kumar J., Thakur B., Bhadwal R., Thakur K.C. and Sharma Y. (2015) Radioactivity Measurements along Jwalamukhi Thrust in Himachal Pradesh, India CPUH-Research Journal, v.1(2), pp. 23-27.
Prajith, R., Rout, R. P., Kumbhar, D., Mishra, R., Sahoo, B. K. and Sapra, B. K. (2019) Measurements of radon (222Rn) and thoron (220Rn) exhalations and their decay product concentrations at Indian Stations in Antarctica. Environ. Earth Sci., v.78(1), pp.1-12.

Table 1:- Sampling stations with latitude- longitude of the study area, µR Survey meter reading, Radon Mass Exhalation Rate, and Thoron Surface Exhalation Rate of soil samples.

S. No.	Sample Station	GPS Readings		Gamma Survey meter reading	Radon Mass Exhalation Rate	Thoron Surface Exhalation Rate
S. No.	Sample Station	Latitude	Longitude	(µR)	(mBq/Kg/h)	(mBq/m²/h)
				Hisar – 1
1	Gangwa	29⁰06'39.24"	75⁰41'44.30"	10	8.64±0.44	148.14±16.29
2	GJU	29⁰10'16.00"	75⁰44'05.00"	10	7.38±1.23	142.62±13.11
3	Mayar	29⁰06'08.65"	75⁰51'50.78"	9	14.97±6.16	70.42±18.28
4	Rawat Khera	28⁰58'57.59"	75⁰40'39.78"	11	5.04±6.94	172.32±169.50
5	Bhojraj	29⁰01'55.78"	75⁰47'18.82"	10	47.97±9.16	619.88±105.88
6	Dabra	29⁰05'42.85"	75⁰45'39.42"	8	33.21±6.05	105.88±51.65
7	Satrod Khurd	29⁰07'38.07"	75⁰47'16.00"	8	9.32±3.28	125.93±125.93
8	Talwandi Rana	29⁰14'50.35"	75⁰47'01.19"	9	1.94±0.39	150.86±150.86
9	Nalwa	28⁰56'48.67"	75⁰49'41.36"	10	79.36±146.47	107.09±107.09
10	Mirzapur	29⁰11'26.88"	75⁰48'43.07"	9	0.35±0.34	291.20±188.22
				Hisar – 2
11	Jakhod Kheda	29⁰13'09.40"	75⁰33'48.45"	7	66.67±4.81	68.93±68.93
12	Budak	29⁰03'30.86"	75⁰23'33.97"	6	3.48±8.71	98.29±85.36
13	Balsamand	29⁰04'28.22"	75⁰29'08.26"	13	37.07±5.78	132.87±108
14	Sahpur	29⁰09'32.92"	75⁰37'43.06"	9	5.22±4.24	95.77±95.77
15	Kirtan	29⁰08'10.12"	75⁰33'29.00"	8	5.00±8.28	104.10±87.10
16	Rawalwas Kala	29⁰04'17.07"	75⁰34'17.01"	6	36.67±5.94	184.07±129.18
17	Gawad	28⁰58'56.31	75⁰33'25.14"	9	10.22±7.00	87.81±33.35
18	Arya Nagar	29⁰06'49.43"	75⁰38'20.14"	8	68.75±4.42	123.16±100.40
19	Kalwas	29⁰02'28.92"	75⁰39'16.02"	10	57.98±9.90	97.72±97.72
				Adampur
20	Mohabhatpur	29⁰13'12.42"	75⁰26'49.58"	8	21.61±26.37	118.47±117.13
21	Daruli	29⁰16'29.10"	75⁰23'42.54"	8	2.82±0.26	78.20±78.20
22	Chibharwal	29⁰21'07.06"	75⁰25'51.20"	6	17.58±2.24	116.47±99.35
23	Adampur	29⁰16'54.99"	75⁰29'00.73"	9	6.27±0.38	46.42±7.28
24	Ashrawan	29⁰16'32.57"	75⁰36'07.50"	8	8.39±0.52	141.04±133.42
25	Telanwali	29⁰09'13.86"	75⁰25'54.41"	6	7.28±3.94	90.65±90.65
				Agroha
26	Nangthala	29⁰19'58.25"	75⁰42'33.64"	9	0.14±0.19	123.25±99.11
27	Agroha	29⁰19'30.70"	75⁰38'04.34"	8	53.56±8.94	109.89±82.91
28	Thaska	29⁰16'10.69"	75⁰41'12.50"	8	15.33±1.32	111.11±89.70
29	Sarangpur	29⁰21'16.48"	75⁰32'16.95"	7	27.55±21.95	110.03±110.03
30	Sabarwash	29⁰24'16.82"	75⁰36'57.23"	9	4.50±0.75	101.74±101.74
31	Kirmara	29⁰22'53.55"	75⁰41'24.28"	8	86.27±7.02	145.80±140.80
32	Durjanpur	29⁰14'13.29"	75⁰38'51.51"	8	8.18±0.46	120.48±120.48
				Barwala
33	Jevra	29⁰19'27.99"	75⁰48'26.64"	8	6.18±0.32	150.60±119.14
34	Balak	29⁰16'48.81"	75⁰39'16.05"	8	11.86±1.94	112.54±112.54
35	Barwala	29⁰21'30.89"	75⁰53'26.53"	8	0.45±2.37	125.84±39.36
36	Dhingtana	29⁰16'80.24"	75⁰48'35.75"	9	11.98±1.16	187.87±145
37	Naya Gaon	29⁰28'16.19"	75⁰51'44.24"	9	12.50±83.39	258.36±204.81
38	Matloda	29⁰23'56.28"	76⁰00'35.05"	9	37.28±0.43	518.23±47.97
39	Kharakheda	29⁰05'58.53"	76⁰05'40.78"	9	43.57±7.38	126.50±99.73
40	Dhad	29⁰19'06.78"	75⁰59'03.19"	9	10.68±1.21	117.64±111.41
41	Sotha	29⁰22'47.37"	76⁰04'05.19"	10	94.65±7.47	158.42±96.41
				Ukalana
42	Khairi	29⁰28'55.29"	75⁰46'41.10'	9	2.03±0.48	604.20±47.74
43	Bheriya	29⁰29'31.23"	75⁰51'59.97"	10	22.12±54.92	107.99±83.41
44	Bithmara	29⁰32'10.70"	75⁰55'43.88"	9	14.84±0.38	92.57±92.57
45	Kundanpura	29⁰32'41.20"	75⁰51'31.10"	8	7.14±0.18	272.02±130.87
46	Litani	29⁰28'35.07"	75⁰59'02.29"	9	28.13±0.38	176.64±64.69
47	Pabra	29⁰24'53"75	75⁰47'30.50"	7	9.55±5.41	114.18±112.11
				Narnaud
48	Lohari Ragho	29⁰15'50.30"	76⁰02'58.31"	10	07.61±0.73	123.79±123.79
49	Khera Chopta	29⁰19'24.44"	76⁰05'09.57"	10	12.30±2.84	216.01±179.16
50	Koth Kalan	29⁰23'35.39"	76⁰10'17.61"	7	01.87±5.42	203.70±179.77
51	Mirchpur	29⁰18'42.03"	76⁰10'24.54"	10	18.27±2.27	134.77±31.44
52	Rajthal	29⁰15'15.26"	76⁰11'19.80"	10	06.00±0.19	254.11±177.15
				Hansi – 1
53	Dhana Kala	29⁰05'11.85"	76⁰00'49.04"	7	02.80±0.49	128.27±28.46
54	Sorkhi	29⁰03'10.19"	76⁰06'55.81"	7	12.32±0.71	83.67±83.67
55	Kumbha	29⁰07'54.21"	76⁰4'13.89"	9	0.41±1.16	101.71±101.71
56	Khanpur	29⁰16'11.55"	75⁰55'33.94"	9	0.53±5.92	266.38±80.53
57	Sultanpura	29⁰21'03.63"	75⁰52'10.39"	8	01.13±0.51	301.20±200.80
		Hansi – 2
58	Madhanheri	29⁰00'32.42"	76⁰12'40.15"	10	0.33±1.21	133.57±130.94
59	Puthi (Saman)	29⁰04'35.35"	76⁰15'37.81"	8	57.14±36.89	134.15±104.25
60	Bass	29⁰06'22.37"	76⁰11'59.73"	10	46.77±2.64	158.37±78.55

Table 2:- Statistical parameters for gamma radiation dose rate, Radon Mass Exhalation Rate and Thoron Surface Exhalation Rate.

	Gamma Radiation Dose Rate	Rn²²² Mass Exhalation Rate	Rn²²⁰ Surface Exhalation Rate
N total	60	60	60
Mean	0.76	20.65	161.73
Standard Deviation	0.12	23.66	112.06
Variance	0.01	559.70	12558
Sum	45.38	1239.16	9704
Skewness	0.21	1.54	2.85
Kurtosis	1.11	1.58	8.78
Coefficient of Variation	0.15	1.15	0.69
SD times 2	0.23	47.32	224.12
SD times 3	0.35	70.97	336.19
Geometric Mean	0.75	9.23	140.21
Geometric SD	1.17	4.62	1.63
Mode	0.79	--	--
Minimum	0.53	0.14	46.42
1st Quartile (Q1)	0.70	5.02	106.49
Median	0.79	10.45	125.89
3rd Quartile (Q3)	0.83	30.67	165.37
Maximum	1.14	94.65	619.88
Interquartile Range (Q3 - Q1)	0.13	25.65	58.89
Range (Maximum - Minimum)	0.61	94.51	573.46

Table 3:- Comparison table of Radon and Thoron Exahalation rates of the present study with local studies.

Area	Mass Exhalation Rate(mBq/Kg/h)	Surface Exhalation Rate(mBq/ m² /h)	Reference
Kurukshetra, Haryana	5.60	154.2	Chauhan and Chakarvarti, 2002
Tosham Ring, Haryana	7.69	255.9	Singh et al., 2008
Morni Hill, Haryana	12.66	446.63	Singh joga 2009
Kala Amb, Haryana	7.61	268.54	Singh joga 2009
Chandigarh	6.15	216.87	Singh et al. 2009
Sirsa	11.44 to 42.66	210.48-785.03	Mann et al., 2014
Yamuna nagar, Haryana	73	1683	Pundir et al. 2014
Panchkula, Haryana	83	1892	Pundir et al. 2014
Northern Rajasthan	14.96	495.32	Duggal et al (2015)
Mohali, Panjab	1.36	28.3	Mehta et al (2015)
Jawalmukhi Thrust, Himachal Pradesh	.02417E-04 to 7.24148E-05	------	Thakur et al., 2015
Ambala	1.76	39.92	Mehta and Shikha, 2016
Hamirpur Mineralaized Zone Himachal Pradesh	22.51	35.11	Singh et al (2015)
Amritsar, Panjab	20	664×10³	Kaur et al (2018)
Tarn Taran, Panjab	23	1531×10³	Kaur et al (2018)
Central Haryana	27.1	378.3	Panghal et al(2018)
Karnal, Haryana	16.6	475560	Devi et al (2020)
Antarctica (Bharati)	5.17	1028×10³	Prajith et al(2019)
Antarctica (Maitri)	2.81	128.8×10³	Prajith et al(2019)
Faridabad, Haryana	31	5846 ×10³	Singh et al (2020)
Uttarakhand	47.88	6163.632×10³	Anamika et al (2020)
Kolhapur, Maharashtra	12.66	2300	P.M. Raste et al (2020)
Bageshwar ,Kumaun Himalaya	28.7	2211.6×10³	Kumar et al (2021)
East Khasi Hills Meghalaya	11.6	24.1	Pyngrope et al (2022)
Hisar, Haryana	20.65	161.73	Present Study

No competing interests reported.

Download PDF

Journal Publication

published 29 Mar, 2023

Read the published version in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment →

Editor assigned by journal
31 Oct, 2022
Submission checks completed at journal
31 Oct, 2022
First submitted to journal
22 Oct, 2022

You are reading this latest preprint version

Radon and Thoron Exhalation Rate in the soil of Western Haryana, India

Status:

Journal Publication

Version 1

Abstract

Figures

1. Introduction

2. Material And Methods

2.1. Study Area

2.2. Experimental

2.2.1 Radon Mass Exhalation Rate

2.2.2 Thoron Surface Exhalation Rate

3. Results And Discussion

4. Conclusion

Declarations

References

Tables

Additional Declarations

Status:

Journal Publication

Version 1