Radon-222 is a ubiquitous noble gas arising from decay of radium-226 normally present in the earth's crust. Alpha radiation from inhaled short-lived daughters of radon readily irradiates human bronchial epithelium, and there is now good evidence of excess risk of lung cancer in underground miners exposed to higher concentrations. In homes, radon levels are highly variable, showing approximately...

Although United Kingdom (UK) Building Regulations applicable to houses constructed since 1992 in Radon Affected Areas address the health issues arising from the presence of radon in domestic properties and specify the installation of radon-mitigation measures during construction, no legislative requirement currently exists for monitoring the effectiveness of such remediation once construction i...

Assessment of long-term indoor radon concentrations from short-term testing results are of significant importance when radon risk assessment and liability issues are considered. These issues are based on the figure of annual exposure to indoor radon while radon measurement practices are mainly followed the EPA short-term testing protocols. A mathematical framework has been developed that facili...

This study correlated lung cancer (LC) mortality with statistical data obtained from government public databases. In order to asses a relationship between LC deaths and radon accumulation in dwellings, indoor radon concentrations were measured with passive detectors randomly distributed in Chihuahua City. Kriging (K) and Inverse-Distance Weighting (IDW) spatial interpolations were carried out. ...

This study examined correlations between radon, thoron and thoron progeny concentrations based on surveys conducted in several different countries. For this purpose, passive detectors developed or modified by the National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS) were used. Radon and thoron concentrations were measured using passive discriminative radon-thoron detectors. Thoron progeny measurem...

Data collected as a part of a survey on radon concentrations from about 40 000 dwellings in England for six contrasting geological units were analysed to evaluate the impact of house-specific factors (building characteristics and construction dates) and of proximity to geological boundaries. After adjusting for temperature and outdoor radon, geological unit, house type, double glazing and date ...

background: several epidemiological studies conducted on underground miner’s show that exposure to elevated levels of radioactive radon gas is expected to increase the risk of lung cancer. relative risk of lung cancer is almost linear with radon exposure. elevated concentrations of radon are not only reported within mines but also for closed indoor environment of general public houses. measurem...

The highest time-averaged indoor radon concentrations for a slab-on-grade structure occur when the structure experience neutral pressure conditions. Experimental evidence was provided throughout the utilization of the University of Florida Radon Research House (UFRRH) showing that semi-diurnal atmospheric pressure variations are responsible for continuous pumping of radon-rich soil gas into the...

Air-ions and radon are two atmospheric trace constituents which have two opposite effects on human health: the ions are beneficial, and radon gas is potentially lethal as it increases the risk of lung cancer. In the lower troposphere, radon is the most important generator of the air-ions. Ionization by cosmic rays and radioactive minerals is almost constant in daily cycles, and variation of air...