INDOOR RADON RELATED WITH THE GEOLOGY IN ROMANIAN URBAN AGGLOMERATIONS (CLUJ-NAPOCA)

Authors

  • Ștefan FLORICĂ Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania; Babes-Bolyai University, Faculty of Biology and Geology, Department of Geology, Mihail Kogalniceanu nr.1, 400084 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. *Corresponding author: stefan_stefan2121@yahoo.com
  • Tiberius DICU Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5995-1327
  • Bety-Denissa BURGHELE Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2711-8271
  • Mircea MOLDOVAN Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4727-1321
  • Kinga SZACSVAI Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
  • Anca ȚENTER Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2264-2712
  • Botond PAPP Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1981-5165
  • Simion BELDEAN Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6892-1223
  • Ștefan FLORICĂ Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Tiberiu CATALINA Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9954-0781
  • Arthur TUNYAGI Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Cristina HORJU-DEAC Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Andreea RĂCHIȘAN Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Teofana SFERLE Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Gabriel DOBREI Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Carlos SAINZ Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
  • Alexandra CUCOȘ Babeş-Bolyai University, Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, 30 Fântânele Street, 400294 Cluj-Napoca, Romania. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6466-121X

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24193/subbambientum.2017.2.03

Keywords:

indoor radon, radon exposure, indoor air quality.

Abstract

Radon is a natural radioactive gas that occurs due to the radioactive decay of radium (226Ra) present in rocks which, in turn, cames from the radioactive decay of uranium (238U), a primordial natural element. Along with factors such as porosity, permeability and humidity of the rocks and soils, pressure and temperature, geology setting plays one of the most important roles in the release of radon into the environment. Depending on the mineralogical compositions and characteristics of the bedrock from a certain area, a higher or lower concentration of radioactive minerals can be found in the rocks, which will directly influence the level of radon in the atmosphere, implicitly the concentration of radon measured in houses. In this study, a six months concentration of radon (222Rn) was assessed in 256houses from Cluj-Napoca area using CR-39 nuclear track detectors. Correlations between the indoor radon levels and the geological setting was further analyzed. The aim is to better understand the influence of geology on the concentration of radon levels in homes, in order to further identify other risk areas in terms of exposure to radon. Further investigation is needed on other factors influencing the accumulation of radon in high concentrations indoor, such as ventilation, occupation patterns or constructive and architectural features for typical houses. Therefore, the results of this work are considered to be important for indoor radon management in Romania.

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STUDIA UBB AMBIENTUM, 62(LXII), 2, 2017

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Published

2017-12-30

How to Cite

FLORICĂ, Ștefan, DICU, T., BURGHELE, B.-D., MOLDOVAN, M., SZACSVAI, K., ȚENTER, A., PAPP, B., BELDEAN, S., FLORICĂ, Ștefan, CATALINA, T., TUNYAGI, A., HORJU-DEAC, C., RĂCHIȘAN, A., SFERLE, T., DOBREI, G., SAINZ, C., & CUCOȘ, A. (2017). INDOOR RADON RELATED WITH THE GEOLOGY IN ROMANIAN URBAN AGGLOMERATIONS (CLUJ-NAPOCA). Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Ambientum, 62(2), 29–36. https://doi.org/10.24193/subbambientum.2017.2.03

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Volume 62, No. 2, December 2017

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