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Radon gas measurement in vegetable and fruit samples taken from Kahramanmaras Province of Turkey

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Abstract

This study aims to determine the radon concentration, inhalation rate, effective radium content, and annual effective dose in vegetable and fruit samples in Kahramanmaras city. For this purpose, a total of 17 vegetable and fruit samples were collected from 10 different places in Kahramanmaras. Radon concentrations, inhalation rates, and effective radium content of these vegetable and fruit samples were determined using a CR-39 passive trace detector. Radon concentration, inhalation rates, effective radium content, and annual effective dose in fruit and vegetable samples range from 94.31 ± 7.74  to 341.29 ± 37.20 Bq/m3, 12.67 ± 1.04  to 45.82 ± 4.98 mBq/m2h, 8.97 ± 0.82 to 32.45 ± 3.32 Bq/kg, and 2.38 ± 0.09 to 8.61 ± 0.58 mSv/y, respectively. These values have been compared with the safe limit values recommended by the national and international commissions. As a result, it has been determined that these values are well below the safe limit value (400 Bq/m3) recommended by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority (TAEA). However, radon activity concentration values of 9 samples (samples numbers: 4, 8, 10, 12, 13,14,15,16, and 17) are above the limit values recommended by EPA (190 Bq/m3). In addition, an excellent correlation was found between radon concentration, effective radium content, and radon inhalation rates (R2 = 0.99).

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Acknowledgements

The CR-39 track detectors and diffusion cups were kindly provided by the Çekmece Nuclear Research and Training Center. Professor Mahmut Doğru, a member of the supervisory board of a higher education institution, is also thanked by the author. The author also wishes to express his gratitude to Associate Professor Sultan Şahin, a teacher at the University of Bitlis Eren's Department of Physics, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, for his aid in photographing tracks on CR-39 detectors. Professor Cumhur Canbazolu, a teacher at the Department of Physics, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Kilis 7 Aralık, assisted the author in counting radon traces on pictures.

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Correspondence to Serdar Gümbür.

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Küçükönder, E., Gümbür, S. & Alıç, H. Radon gas measurement in vegetable and fruit samples taken from Kahramanmaras Province of Turkey. Environ Dev Sustain 25, 14607–14621 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-022-02680-1

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