Assessment of the Radioactivity, Metals Content and Mineralogy of Granodiorite from Calabria, Southern Italy: A Case Study.

In this paper, an assessment of the natural radioactivity level, radon exhalation, metal contamination, and mineralogy of a granodiorite rock sample from Stilo, in the Calabria region, Southern Italy is presented as a case study. This rock was employed as a building material in the area under study. The specific activity of Ra, Th and K natural radioisotopes was assessed through high-purity germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray spectrometry.

Natural Radioactivity in Raw Building Materials for Underground Parking Lots and Assessment of Radiological Health Risk for the Population.

This article reports the results of an investigation into the activity concentration of natural radionuclides in raw building materials for underground parking lots, together with the assessment of the radiation hazard for the public related to exposure to ionizing radiations. To this purpose, high-purity germanium (HPGe) γ-ray spectrometry was employed in order to quantify the average specific activity of Ra, Th, and K natural radioisotopes. With the aim to assess any possible radiological health risk for the population, the absorbed γ-dose rate (), the annual effective dose equivalent outdoor () and indoor (), the activity concentration index (), and the alpha index () were also estimated, resulting in values that were lower than the maximum recommended ones for humans.

Multivariate Statistics, Mineralogy, and Radiological Hazards Assessment Due to the Natural Radioactivity Content in Pyroclastic Products from Mt. Etna, Sicily, Southern Italy.

In this article, an investigation of the natural radioactivity content of pyroclastic products from Mt. Etna, eastern Sicily, Southern Italy, was carried out. In particular, the assessment of the average activity concentration of the investigated radionuclides, related to the mineralogical phase composition of the analyzed samples, and the radiological health risk for the population, was performed.

Assessment of the Radiological Health Risk Due to the Ra Content in Drinking Water from the Calabria Region, Southern Italy.

In this article, the authors report experimental results obtained for the assessment of the Ra content in 80 drinking water samples from the Calabria region, Southern Italy. The activity concentration, measured with the Perkin Elmer Tricarb 4910 TR Liquid Scintillation Counter (LSC) setup, was compared with the reference values reported in the Italian Legislative Decree 28/2016 in order to evaluate any possible radiological health hazards for the population in terms of Ra content due to the ingestion of the investigated drinking water. The obtained results put in evidence that the average Ra specific activity is lower than the LSC minimum detectable activity (MDA) in all cases, thus, excluding any radiological risk.

Radioactivity, Metals Pollution and Mineralogy Assessment of a Beach Stretch from the Ionian Coast of Calabria (Southern Italy).

In the present article, a case study is reported regarding an investigation carried out in order to assess radioactivity concentration, heavy metals pollution and mineralogy of a beach stretch extending from Soverato to Squillace municipalities of the Ionian coast of Calabria, South of Italy, a popular tourist destination, especially in summer. The analysis of radionuclides contents was performed by using a High Purity Germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray detector, in order to quantify the average specific activity of Ra, Th and K natural radionuclides and Cs anthropogenic radioisotope. The absorbed dose rate and the annual effective dose equivalent radiological hazard indices were also estimated.