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Calculating the indoor radon flux from construction materials and soil

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Abstract

A theoretical method is used to calculate the radon exhalation and flux from the walls of a room and the soil to the living space in the room. The calculations are based on the Fick’s laws to describe the radon diffusion through the walls and in the soil. In both cases, the diffusion is considered as one-dimension along the direction to the inside of the room. Under some conditions, the three-dimensional diffusion has to be taken into account. A comparison between the one- and three-dimensional descriptions is discussed, and hence the radon areal release rate from a wall and that from a construction material sample are formulated and related. Consequent indoor radon concentrations and inhalation doses are represented. The effect of the radon release from the construction materials on calculating the gamma dose rate in a room is studied.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Giza, 12613, Egypt

    M. Orabi

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  1. M. Orabi
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Correspondence to M. Orabi.

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Orabi, M. Calculating the indoor radon flux from construction materials and soil. Eur. Phys. J. Plus 135, 458 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-020-00483-9

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