Radon (222Rn) in underground drinking water supplies of the Southern Greater Poland Region

• Published in: Journal of radioanalytical and nuclear chemistry Vol. 299; no. 3; pp. 1307 - 1312
• Main Authors: Bem, Henryk, Plota, Urszula, Staniszewska, Marta, Bem, Ewa Maria, Mazurek, Daria
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 2014; Springer
• Subjects: Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Diagnostic Radiology; Drinking water; Hadrons; Heavy Ions; Inorganic Chemistry; Nuclear Chemistry; Nuclear Physics; Physical Chemistry; Radiation, Background; Uranium; Effective doses from ingestion and inhalation; Radon in drinking water; Liquid scintillation
• ISSN: 0236-5731; 1588-2780
• DOI: 10.1007/s10967-013-2912-1

Activity concentration of the 222 Rn radionuclide was determined in drinking water samples from the Sothern Greater Poland region by liquid scintillation technique. The measured values ranged from 0.42 to 10.52 Bq/dm 3 with the geometric mean value of 1.92 Bq/dm 3 . The calculated average annual effective doses from ingestion with water and inhalation of this radionuclide escaping from water were 1.15 and 11.8 μSv, respectively. Therefore, it should be underlined that, generally, it’s not the ingestion of natural radionuclides with water but inhalation of the radon escaping from water which is a substantial part of the radiological hazard due to the presence of the natural radionuclides from the uranium and thorium series in the drinking water.