Study on the characteristics of natural radionuclides in surface soil in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and radiological health hazard

• Published in: Environmental earth sciences Vol. 78; no. 1; pp. 1 - 7
• Main Authors: Ba, Vu Ngoc, Van Thang, Nguyen, Dao, Nguyen Quang, Thu, Huynh Nguyen Phong, Loan, Truong Thi Hong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Biogeosciences; Cancer; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth science; Earth Sciences; Efficiency; Energy; Environmental Science and Engineering; Geochemistry; Geology; Health hazards; Health risks; Hydrology/Water Resources; Kaolinite; Laboratories; Montmorillonite; Montmorillonites; Original Article; Physics; Radiation; Radioisotopes; Radionuclide kinetics; Scientific imaging; Sensors; Soil; Soil surfaces; Soils; Terrestrial Pollution; Vietnam; Natural radionuclides; External hazard index; Clay material; HPGe; Cancer risk
• ISSN: 1866-6280; 1866-6299
• DOI: 10.1007/s12665-018-8026-x

The activity concentration of the natural radionuclides 232 Th, 238 U, and 40 K in soil samples collected from different locations of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam was measured. At District 1, the average activity concentration of primordial radionuclides 232 Th, 238 U, and 40 K were 25 ± 2, 33 ± 1, and 215 ± 7 Bq kg −1 , respectively. At District 5, the corresponding values were 22 ± 1, 23 ± 1, and 198 ± 6 Bq kg −1 , respectively. The external hazard index and annual effective dose were found within the safety limitation of UNSCEAR. The cancer risk of people living in District 1 was slightly higher than District 5, with average value of (168 ± 5) 10 −6 Sv −1 in District 1 and (133 ± 4) 10 −6 Sv −1 in District 5. Th/K ratio was calculated for studying the geological characteristics. The results indicated that two main types of soil are kaolinite and montmorillonite.