Evaluation of Radon Concentration in Indoor Air and Groundwater in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India

Radon is a product of the natural radioactive decay of uranium, which occurs naturally in the earths crust, to radium and then to radon. As radium decays, radon is formed and is released into small air or water-containing pores between soil and rock particles. If this occurs near the soil surface, the radon may be released to ambient air. Radon may also be released into groundwater. If this groundwater reaches the surface, most of the radon gas will quickly be released to ambient air, but small amounts may remain in the water. Evaluation of radon concentration in ground water in Shahjahanpur city of Uttar Pradesh has been carried out using Lucas scintillation cell. Radon concentration was also evaluated in indoor air using solid state nuclear track detector (SSNTD) based twin cup dosimeter technique. Radon concentration was found vary from 9 Bq/m3 to 78 with an overall average of 31 Bq/m3. Radon concentration in indoor air varies in summer season from 9 Bq/m3 to 34 Bq/m3 with an average of 19 Bq/m3, during rainy season radon concentration varies from 15 Bq/m3 to 48 Bq/m3 with an average of 29 Bq/m3, during winter season radon concentration varies from 27 Bq/m3 to 78 Bq/m3 with an average of 46 Bq/m3 and during autumn it varies from 16 Bq/m3 to 48 Bq/m3 with an average of 29 Bq/m3. Radon concentration in ground water varies from 3 Bq/l to 25 Bq/l with an overall average of 12 Bq/l.