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Radiological risk assessment in sediment of Namal Lake, Mianwali, Pakistan

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Abstract

This study is concentrated on the radiological risk assessment of sixteen surface sediment samples recovered from Namal Lake, District Mianwali, Punjab, Pakistan. The activity of 137Cs, 40 K, 226Ra, 228Ra, and 232Th was carried out with the help of a high purity germanium detector (HPGe) in the sediment, varied in the ranges of > 0.02–3.73 ± 1.31, 98.32 ± 21.45–341.02 ± 58.67, 18.34 ± 2.16–34.23 ± 4.34, 1.62 ± .30–2.34 ± .52, and 0.14 ± 0.10–2.34 ± 0.59 Bq kg−1 with average values 0.74 ± 0.29, 237.26 ± 37.97, 25.06 ± 4.74, 1.97 ± 0.39, and 1.73 ± 0.33 Bq kg−1, respectively. The measured concentrations in the current study have been compared with other earlier studies in the world. The data was also used for determining the other useful parameters like radium equivalent activity, absorbed dose rate, annual effective dose rate, and external and internal hazards index to assess the radiological risk assessment for the environment around the study area. The ERICA Tool software was also applied for radiological risk assessment for lake fish due to the radioactivity present in the lake sediments. It was concluded from the results of ERICA tool that the risk quotient in this study is less than one indicating that no toxic effects of radioactivity for Namal Lake fish.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are highly thankful to Head Isotope Application Division (IAD), for facilitating the use of equipment for the analysis of the sediment samples for this study. The expert opinion and guidance for sampling strategy provided by Dr. Tanveer Ahmad, DCS, IAD, are highly acknowledged by authors.

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  1. Institute of Physics, Gomal University, D. I. Khan, Pakistan

    Irfan Afzal & Tabassum Nasir

  2. Isotope Application Division, PINSTECH, P.O. Nilore, Islamabad, Pakistan

    Muhammad Zaman Chaudhary & Nadeem Yaqoob

  3. Namal Institute, 35-km Talagang, Road, Mianwali, Pakistan

    Ehsan Ullah Khan

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  1. Irfan Afzal
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  2. Muhammad Zaman Chaudhary
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Afzal, I., Chaudhary, M.Z., Khan, E.U. et al. Radiological risk assessment in sediment of Namal Lake, Mianwali, Pakistan. Environ Monit Assess 194, 223 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-09881-1

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