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Numerical investigations on radon migration from building walls into indoor atmosphere under natural convection

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Abstract

Radon exhaled from building materials infiltrates the indoor atmosphere and is transported into the indoor space by buoyancy-driven airflow. This paper investigated the dynamic coupling of radon concentration in the building wall area and indoor space. An indoor radon migration model under natural convection caused by temperature gradient was established. The radon exhalation rate, average Nusselt number, and average Sherwood number at the building wall and indoor space interface were quantified. The mechanism of radon migration from building materials into the indoor atmosphere was elucidated. Results show that natural convection influences the flow of indoor air and the radon concentration distribution, which increases with the increase of temperature gradient.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study obtained from the corresponding author (fengshengyang@usc.edu.cn) upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 11705083), Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province of China (grant number 2023JJ30494), Scientific Research Fund of Hunan Provincial Education Department (grant number 22A0296), Foundation of Equipment Pre-research Area (grant number 80927015101) and Science and Technology Plan Project of Hengyang City (grant number 202150063436).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Resource Environment and Safety Engineering, University of South China, Hengyang, 421001, Hunan, People’s Republic of China

    Yourui Jiang & Shengyang Feng

  2. College of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China

    Yong Liu

  3. 3Rd Construction Co., Ltd. of China Construction 5Th Engineering Bureau, Changsha, 410007, Hunan, People’s Republic of China

    Puxin Chen

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  1. Yourui Jiang
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Jiang, Y., Liu, Y., Chen, P. et al. Numerical investigations on radon migration from building walls into indoor atmosphere under natural convection. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 333, 651–663 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-023-09319-z

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