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Determination of Natural Radionuclides and Mineral Contents in Environmental Soil Samples

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Abstract

A study of natural radioactivity levels in environmental samples within the northern coastal region of Egypt and the Eastern Province—Khobar, Dammam, Saudi Arabia, has been evaluated. The samples were analyzed using gamma spectrometry based on HpGe detector. The mean activity concentrations of 238U, 232Th, 235U, 40K in addition to 137Cs were 27.03 ± 6.74 Bq/kg, 19.76 ± 0.92 Bq/kg, 0.83 ± 0.06 Bq/kg, 147.11 ± 1.69 Bq/kg and 0.09 ± 0.01 Bq/kg for the first region and 32.9 ± 6.65 Bq/kg, 28.2 ± 0.78 Bq/kg, 1.10 ± 0.3 Bq/kg, 193.8 ± 1.55 Bq/kg and 0.1 ± 0.001 Bq/kg for the second region, respectively. The radiological hazard parameters such as the absorbed dose rate (D), annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), gamma-ray hazard index (Iγ) and the annual gonadal dose equivalent of the studied samples were estimated. Also, the current work provided the mineralogical composition and the correlations between them and the distribution of radionuclides.

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Acknowledgements

This project was supported by the Deanship of Scientific Research at Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University under the research Project 2017/01/7794.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Physics Department, College of Science and Humanities in Al-Kharj, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, 11942, Saudi Arabia

    S. A. Abd El-Azeem

  2. Physics Department, Faculty of Women for Arts, Science and Education, Ain Shams University, Cairo, 11757, Egypt

    S. A. Abd El-Azeem & Howaida Mansour

  3. Department of Physics, College of Science and Art, Qassim University, Ar Rass, 51921, Saudi Arabia

    Howaida Mansour

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  1. S. A. Abd El-Azeem
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Correspondence to S. A. Abd El-Azeem.

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Abd El-Azeem, S.A., Mansour, H. Determination of Natural Radionuclides and Mineral Contents in Environmental Soil Samples. Arab J Sci Eng 46, 697–704 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-020-04738-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13369-020-04738-6

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