Natural radioactivity and chemical concentrations in Egyptian groundwater.

Measurements of natural radioactivity in drinking water have been performed in many parts of the world, mostly for assessment of the doses and risk resulting from consuming water. A study of the radionuclide and chemical components in groundwater from Beni Suef Governate, Egypt has been carried out. Fifty water samples were analyzed by gamma ray spectroscopy to determine the 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K concentrations; major elements, pH, alkalinity, and conductivity were also measured. The specific activity values ranged from 0.008 to 0.040 Bq/l for 226Ra, from 0.003 to 0.019 Bq/l for 232Th, and from 0.025 to 0.344 Bq/l for 40K. The annual ingestions of these radionuclides, using local consumption rates (average over the whole population) of 1.5 l day(-1), were estimated to be 8.59, 4.86, and 83.47 Bq year(-1) for 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K, respectively. The estimated values and weighted means of these radionuclides compare well with the world average. The estimated effective doses from drinking water were found to be 2.4 µSv year(-1) (226Ra), 1.1 µSv year(-1) (232Th), and 0.51 µSv year(-1) (40K). Contribution of these radionuclides to the committed effective dose from 1 year consumption of drinking water is estimated to be only 4%.

Natural radioactive nuclides and chemical components in the groundwater of Beni Suef Governate, Middle Egypt.

Measurements of natural radioactivity in drinking water have been performed in many parts of the world, mostly for assessment of the doses and risk resulting from consuming water. A study of the radionuclide and chemical components in groundwater from Beni Suef Governate, Egypt has been carried out. Fifty water samples were analysed by gamma-ray spectroscopy to determine the (226)Ra, (232)Th and (40)K concentrations; major elements, pH, alkalinity and conductivity were also measured. The activity concentration values ranged from 0.008 to 0.040 Bq l(-1) for (226)Ra, from 0.003 to 0.019 Bq l(-1) for (232)Th and from 0.025 to 0.344 Bq l(-1) for (40)K. The annual ingestion of these radionuclides, using local consumption rates (averaged over the whole population) of 1.5 l d(-1), was estimated to be 8.59, 4.86 and 83.47 Bq y(-1) for (226)Ra, (232)Th and (40)K, respectively. The estimated effective doses from drinking water were found to be 2.4 microSv y(-1) ((226)Ra), 1.1 microSv y(-1) ((232)Th) and 0.5 microSv y(-1) ((40)K). The contribution of these radionuclides to the committed effective dose from a year's consumption of drinking water is therefore estimated to be only 4% of the WHO value (0.1 mSv y(-1)). The moderate pH value is the most important parameter, and there was no observed correlation between natural radioactivity and electrical conductivity or concentrations of major ions.