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The path from geology to indoor radon

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Abstract

It is generally accepted that radon emission is strongly influenced by the geological characteristics of the bedrock. However, transport in-soil and entry paths indoors are defined by other factors such as permeability, building and architectural features, ventilation, occupation patterns, etc. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the contribution of each parameter, from natural to man-made, on the radon accumulation indoors and to assess potential patterns, based on 100 case studies in Romania. The study pointed out that the geological foundation can provide a reasonable explanation for the majority of the values recorded in both soil and indoor air. Results also showed that older houses, built with earth-based materials, are highly permeable to soil radon. Energy-efficient houses, on the other hand, have a tendency to disregard the radon potential of the geological foundation, causing a higher predisposition to radon accumulation indoors and decreasing the general indoor air quality.

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Acknowledgements

The research is supported by the project ID P_37_229, Contract No. 22/01.09.2016, with the title “Smart Systems for Public Safety through Control and Mitigation of Residential Radon linked with Energy Efficiency Optimization of Buildings in Romanian Major Urban Agglomerations SMART-RAD-EN” of the POC 2014-2020 Program.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Ştefan Florică, Bety-Denissa Burghele, Nicoleta Bican-Brişan, Robert Begy, Alexandra Cucoş, Tiberiu Catalina, Tiberius Dicu, Gabriel Dobrei, Andrei Istrate, Alexandru Lupulescu, Mircea Moldovan, Dan Niţă, Botond Papp, Istvan Pap, Kinga Szacsvai, Ancuţa Ţenter, Teofana Sferle & Carlos Sainz

  2. Department of Geology, Faculty of Biology and Geology, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Ştefan Florică & Vlad Codrea

  3. Interdisciplinary Research Institute on Bio-Nano-Science, Babeş-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Robert Begy

  4. Faculty of Engineering Installations, Technical University of Civil Engineering of Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania

    Tiberiu Catalina & Andrei Istrate

  5. Department of Medical Physics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Cantabria, Santander, Spain

    Carlos Sainz

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  1. Ştefan Florică
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  2. Bety-Denissa Burghele
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Correspondence to Bety-Denissa Burghele.

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Florică, Ş., Burghele, BD., Bican-Brişan, N. et al. The path from geology to indoor radon. Environ Geochem Health 42, 2655–2665 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-019-00496-z

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