Radon is a natural radioactive gas known to be the main contributor to natural background radiation exposure and the major leading cause of lung cancer second to smoking. Indoor radon concentration levels of 200 and 400 Bq/m are reference values suggested by the 90/143/Euratom recommendation, above which mitigation measures should be taken in new and old buildings, respectively, to reduce expos...

In situ radon monitoring is necessary to characterize and qualify workplace and other environments in order to determine the need for occupational exposure assessments, to demonstrate compliance with standards and to verify the effectiveness of mitigation efforts. A web-based, energy sensitive electrostatic chamber radon monitoring system, developed at the University of Guelph, can be used to a...

In 1995 and 1996 radon concentrations and effective air flows were measured in approximately 1500 Dutch dwellings built between 1985 and 1993. The goal of this investigation was to describe the trend in the average radon concentration by supplementing the first survey on dwellings built up to 1984 and to quantify the contributions of the most important sources of radon. In the living room of ne...

Results: Exposure to indoor radon and its decay products is a major contributor to the radiation exposure of the general population. In Germany, the mean radiation exposure due to radon in living rooms and bedrooms is about 49 Bq/m. It is well documented in the scientific liter ature that indoor radon significantly increases the risk of lung cancer, probably in a linear dose-response relationsh...

Background: Ramsar, a northern city in Iran, lies on the coast of the Caspian Sea. This city has areas with some of the highest levels of natural radiation measured to date. The radon concentration in some areas of Ramsar is up to 3700 Bq m–3. On the other hand, due to high level of humidity, damp-proof barriers should be used in construction of new buildings in radon prone areas of this cit...

The State of Florida has a draft radon standard for new construction. This study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of two slab types (monolithic and slab-in-stem wall) in retarding radon entry in new houses built in accordance with the proposed standard over high radon potential soils. Fourteen houses were monitored during their construction on sites whose soil gas radon concentration...

Inhalation of the short-lived radon decay products, Po, Pb, Bi/Po, in homes, in the outdoor atmosphere and at work places yield the greatest amount of the natural radiation exposure of the human. In all dosimetric models the dominant parameter related to dose is the activity size distribution of the decay products in the air because the original deposition destination and amount of the inhaled ...

The study aims at measuring the gamma activity concentration (Ra, Th and K) of sub-slab filling gravel of Finnish houses. This study forms a part of a wider study aiming at exploring factors affecting high indoor radon concentrations in Finnish dwellings. The gamma activity and radon emanation were measured from gravel samples sent from 229 Finnish municipalities, the gamma activity was reporte...

Exposure to radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. Radon is an odorless, tasteless and invisible gas produced by the decay of naturally occurring uranium in soil and water. The amount of radon in the air is measured in "picocuries per liter of air," or "pCi/L." There are many kinds of low-cost "do-it-yourself" radon test kits you can get through the mail and in some har...