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Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Levels and Radiological Hazards of Cement in Iraq

Received: 27 September 2018     Accepted: 10 October 2018     Published: 5 November 2018
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Abstract

Eight samples of cement were collected from different commercial factories (Al-Koufa, Al-Basra, Al-Najaf and Kerkouk factories) located in Iraq. They were analyzed using a gamma ray spectroscopy system. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K were ranged from 5.8 to 43.17 Bq kg-1, from 0.99 to 55.79 Bq kg-1 and from 53.28 to 185.34 Bq kg-1, respectively. The potential radiological hazards were assessed by calculating the radium equivalent activity (Raeq), the indoor absorbed gamma dose rate (D), the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), the alpha index (Iα), the gamma index (Iγ), and the external hazard (Hex) and internal hazard (Hin) indices. The highest value of Raeq is estimated of 101.36 Bq kg-1, which is significantly less than the upper limit of 370 Bq kg-1. The estimated maximum value of the absorbed gamma dose rate of 54.71 nGy h-1 is within the world average value of 55 nGy h-1, and the annual effective dose equivalent in the studied samples were 0.05 (outdoor), 0.18 (indoor) mSv y-1, which is lower than the recommended limit reported in the UNSCEAR (2000). The values of the hazard indices were below the recommended levels; therefore, the study shows that the measured radioactivity for cement does not pose as significant source of radiation hazard and is safe for use in the construction of dwellings.

Published in Nuclear Science (Volume 3, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11
Page(s) 23-27
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Gamma Ray Spectroscopy, Building Materials, Hazard Index

References
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[3] Turhan, S., 2008."Assessment of the natural radioactivity and radiological hazards in Turkish cement and its raw materials". J. Environ. Radioact, Vol. 99, 404-414.
[4] Hany El-Gamal, Marwa Abdel Hamid, A. I. Abdel Mageed, A. L. El-Attar., 2012. "-226Ra, -232Th and -40K analysis in water samples from Assiut, Egypt". XI Radiation Physics & Protection Conference, 106-106, (2012).
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[8] R. Ravisankar, K. Vanasundari, A. Chandrasekaran, A. Rajalak-shmi, M. Suganya, P. Vijayagopal, V. Meenakshisundaram, Measurement of natural radioactivity in building materials of Namakkal, Tamilnadu, India using gamma ray spectrometry, Appl. Radiat. Isot. 70 (2012) 699–704.
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[17] Ahmed NK. Measurement of natural radioactivity in building materials in Qena city, Upper Egypt. J Environ Radioact. 2005; 3: 91–99.
[18] Rahman SU, Rafique M, Jabbar A, Matiullah. Radiological hazards due to naturally occurring radionuclides in the selected building materials used for the construction of dwellings in four districts of the Punjab province, Pakistan. Radiat Prot Dosim. 2013; 153(3): 352–360.
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Zaki A. Mansoor, Takrid Muneam Nafae, Ali Kareem K. Jelaot. (2018). Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Levels and Radiological Hazards of Cement in Iraq. Nuclear Science, 3(2), 23-27. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11

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    ACS Style

    Zaki A. Mansoor; Takrid Muneam Nafae; Ali Kareem K. Jelaot. Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Levels and Radiological Hazards of Cement in Iraq. Nucl. Sci. 2018, 3(2), 23-27. doi: 10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11

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    AMA Style

    Zaki A. Mansoor, Takrid Muneam Nafae, Ali Kareem K. Jelaot. Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Levels and Radiological Hazards of Cement in Iraq. Nucl Sci. 2018;3(2):23-27. doi: 10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11,
      author = {Zaki A. Mansoor and Takrid Muneam Nafae and Ali Kareem K. Jelaot},
      title = {Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Levels and Radiological Hazards of Cement in Iraq},
      journal = {Nuclear Science},
      volume = {3},
      number = {2},
      pages = {23-27},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ns.20180302.11},
      abstract = {Eight samples of cement were collected from different commercial factories (Al-Koufa, Al-Basra, Al-Najaf and Kerkouk factories) located in Iraq. They were analyzed using a gamma ray spectroscopy system. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K were ranged from 5.8 to 43.17 Bq kg-1, from 0.99 to 55.79 Bq kg-1 and from 53.28 to 185.34 Bq kg-1, respectively. The potential radiological hazards were assessed by calculating the radium equivalent activity (Raeq), the indoor absorbed gamma dose rate (D), the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), the alpha index (Iα), the gamma index (Iγ), and the external hazard (Hex) and internal hazard (Hin) indices. The highest value of Raeq is estimated of 101.36 Bq kg-1, which is significantly less than the upper limit of 370 Bq kg-1. The estimated maximum value of the absorbed gamma dose rate of 54.71 nGy h-1 is within the world average value of 55 nGy h-1, and the annual effective dose equivalent in the studied samples were 0.05 (outdoor), 0.18 (indoor) mSv y-1, which is lower than the recommended limit reported in the UNSCEAR (2000). The values of the hazard indices were below the recommended levels; therefore, the study shows that the measured radioactivity for cement does not pose as significant source of radiation hazard and is safe for use in the construction of dwellings.},
     year = {2018}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Assessment of Natural Radioactivity Levels and Radiological Hazards of Cement in Iraq
    AU  - Zaki A. Mansoor
    AU  - Takrid Muneam Nafae
    AU  - Ali Kareem K. Jelaot
    Y1  - 2018/11/05
    PY  - 2018
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11
    T2  - Nuclear Science
    JF  - Nuclear Science
    JO  - Nuclear Science
    SP  - 23
    EP  - 27
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2640-4346
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ns.20180302.11
    AB  - Eight samples of cement were collected from different commercial factories (Al-Koufa, Al-Basra, Al-Najaf and Kerkouk factories) located in Iraq. They were analyzed using a gamma ray spectroscopy system. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K were ranged from 5.8 to 43.17 Bq kg-1, from 0.99 to 55.79 Bq kg-1 and from 53.28 to 185.34 Bq kg-1, respectively. The potential radiological hazards were assessed by calculating the radium equivalent activity (Raeq), the indoor absorbed gamma dose rate (D), the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), the alpha index (Iα), the gamma index (Iγ), and the external hazard (Hex) and internal hazard (Hin) indices. The highest value of Raeq is estimated of 101.36 Bq kg-1, which is significantly less than the upper limit of 370 Bq kg-1. The estimated maximum value of the absorbed gamma dose rate of 54.71 nGy h-1 is within the world average value of 55 nGy h-1, and the annual effective dose equivalent in the studied samples were 0.05 (outdoor), 0.18 (indoor) mSv y-1, which is lower than the recommended limit reported in the UNSCEAR (2000). The values of the hazard indices were below the recommended levels; therefore, the study shows that the measured radioactivity for cement does not pose as significant source of radiation hazard and is safe for use in the construction of dwellings.
    VL  - 3
    IS  - 2
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Radiation Protection Department, Ministry of Science and Technology, Baghdad, Iraq

  • Radiation Protection Department, Ministry of Science and Technology, Baghdad, Iraq

  • Nuclear Safety Department, Ministry of Science and Technology, Baghdad, Iraq

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