Assessment of Natural Radioactivity and Associated Radiation Hazards in Soils samples from Khammuane Provine, Laos

Abstract

The aims of this study are to determine the activity concentration of naturally occurring radionuclides in soils and the extent of their exposure to the population. The radioactivity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in the surface layers (5‑30 cm depth) collected from Khammoune province, Laos, were 32.57 ± 3.35 Bq.kg-1, 41.10 ± 3.04 Bq.kg-1 and 295.07 ± 17.36 Bq.kg-1respectively. From activity concentration of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K, we derived the parameters using the assessment of the radiological hazard from exposure to these soil samples. The average absorbed dose rate of all measured samples is 52.02 ± 4.09 nGy.h-1, while the average annual effective dose in the outdoor due to gamma radioactivity is found to be 0.06 ± 0.005 mSv.y-1.The average values for radium equivalent activity, external and internal hazard indices were found to be 114.07 ± 4.70 Bq.kg-1, 0.31 and 0.39, respectively.