Investigation of Radioactivity Levels in Soil at JUST Campus Prior to the Construction of JRTR

An investigation of the background radiation level in soil samples collected from the campus of Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST) was carried out. A random systematic approach was employed for selecting the sampling locations around the proposed site of Jordan Research and Training Reactor (JRTR). A counting system based on a High Purity Germanium (HPGe) detector coupled with GENIE 2000 spectroscopy software was used to analyze the samples. The average concentration of radionuclides 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, 137Cs and 238U were found to be 20.84, 24.45, 312.39, 2.43 and 83.88 Bq/kg, respectively. Results were compared with published data available in the literature. The measured results will form the baseline for future monitoring of radiological impact of JRTR on JUST campus.