A study on the differences in radon exhalation of different lithologies at various depths and the factors influencing its distribution in northern Shaanxi, China

Pengfei Li; Qiang Sun; Jishi Geng; Qingmin Shi; Jianjun Hu; Shengli Tang

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157935

A study on the differences in radon exhalation of different lithologies at various depths and the factors influencing its distribution in northern Shaanxi, China

Sci Total Environ. 2022 Nov 25:849:157935. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157935. Epub 2022 Aug 7.

Authors

Pengfei Li¹, Qiang Sun², Jishi Geng³, Qingmin Shi⁴, Jianjun Hu⁵, Shengli Tang⁶

Affiliations

¹ College of Geology and Environment, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710054, China. Electronic address: lipengfei@stu.xust.edu.cn.
² College of Geology and Environment, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710054, China; Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Geological Support for Coal Green Exploitation, 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Coal Resources Exploration and Comprehensive Utilization, Ministry of Land and Resources, China. Electronic address: sunqiang04@cumt.edu.cn.
³ College of Geology and Environment, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710054, China. Electronic address: gengjishi@xust.edu.cn.
⁴ College of Geology and Environment, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710054, China; Shaanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Geological Support for Coal Green Exploitation, 710054, China; Key Laboratory of Coal Resources Exploration and Comprehensive Utilization, Ministry of Land and Resources, China. Electronic address: qmshi@xust.edu.cn.
⁵ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Deep Earth Sciences and Geothermal Energy Exploitation and Utilization, Institute of Deep Earth Sciences and Green Energy, College of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China. Electronic address: hujianjun@cumt.edu.cn.
⁶ College of Geology and Environment, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710054, China.

PMID: 35948128
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157935

Abstract

The inhalation of a high concentration of radon gas increases the risk of cancer. Therefore, it is of utmost necessity to pay due attention to the problem of environmental radon pollution. The high radioactivity above the coal slab causes serious radon radiation contamination on the mining grounds in coal mining areas such as the northern part of China and the western part of the United States. At present, there is a lack of research on radon exhalation in different lithologies. In this study, the differences in the radon exhalation of different lithologies at various depths and their controlling factors were studied by NMR and radon measurement. The results highlighted that the radon exhalation rates in different rocks varied from 0.3 to 0.6 Bq/m²·s. The average radon exhalation rate of the soil was 0.7 Bq/m²·s, and the radon exhalation rates of different lithologies followed the pattern red clay > loess > sandstone > mudstone > coal. The radon exhalation rate increased initially, followed by a decrease, and the radon exhalation rate was the highest at the boundary between the soil and rock layers. The radon exhalation rates of different lithologies have a strong correlation with the small pores (<0.1 μm), which govern the changes in the porous structure with depth. The results of this study are important from the perspective evaluation of environmental radon pollution.

Keywords: Controlling factors; Depth; Lithology; Pore characteristics; Radon exhalation.

MeSH terms

Clay
Coal
Exhalation
Radiation Monitoring* / methods
Radon* / analysis
Soil

Substances

Coal
Soil
Radon
Clay