Radiation hazards and health risk assessment from the exposure to terrestrial radionuclides and heavy metals in the Noida and Greater Noida region, India
摘要
The presence of radionuclides and heavy metals in soil is responsible for various health hazards. This research summarizes the potential radiological risks posed by naturally occurring radionuclides and heavy metals in the soil samples of Noida and Greater Noida regions (India), using NaI (Tl) detector. The activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K in the studied area ranged from 12 ± 3 to 29 ± 4 Bq kg−1, 14 ± 7 to 34 ± 7 Bq kg−1, and 253 ± 48 to 408 ± 61 Bq kg−1, respectively, reflecting the variation in natural radioactivity across the sites. Radiological risk parameters, including radium equivalent (Raeq), absorbed dose rate (AD), and annual effective dose (AED), were estimated for the health risk assessment. The absorbed dose rates for 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K across the study locations varied from 5 to 13 nGy h−1, 9 to 21 nGy h−1, and 28 to 50 nGy h−1, respectively. The annual effective doses were estimated to be 0.14 to 0.24 mSv year−1 (indoor) and 0.03 to 0.06 mSv year−1 (outdoor). The mean concentrations of the analyzed trace elements in the examined areas followed the sequence: Pb (0.12 mg kg−1) > Cu (0.07 mg kg−1) > Cr (0.06 mg kg−1) > Ni (0.04 mg kg−1) > Co (0.03 mg kg−1).