Environmental Radioactivity Assessment in Selected Areas of Maysan Governorate

Alattabi, Rasoul

doi:10.25673/123094

Proceedings of International Conference on Applied Innovation in IT · 2025/12/22 · Vol. 13 · Issue 5 · pp. 671–678

Environmental Radioactivity Assessment in Selected Areas of Maysan Governorate

Rasoul Jasim Khlaif and Hadi D. Alattabi

📄 Download PDF DOI: 10.25673/123094

Abstract

Increasing levels of environmental radioactivity arising from both natural and anthropogenic sources have become a global concern due to their potential adverse effects on human health. This study assesses the activity concentrations (Bq/kg), radium equivalent activity (Raeq), external hazard index (Hex), internal hazard index (Hin), and gamma index (Iγ) of natural radionuclides in soil samples collected from the center of Maysan Governorate, Al-Majar city, and Kmet district, southern Iraq. Measurements were carried out using a high-purity germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray spectrometer (BE503P, Canberra), and the activities of ⁴⁰K, ²²⁶Ra, and ²²⁸Ac were determined. The average activity concentrations were 294 ± 18.81 Bq/kg for ⁴⁰K, 16.43 ± 1.14 Bq/kg for ²²⁶Ra, and 16.14 ± 1.17 Bq/kg for ²²⁸Ac. The mean values of Raeq (61.93 Bq/kg), Hex (0.17), Hin (0.21), and Iγ (0.47) were all below the recommended limits set by UNSCEAR (2008). These results indicate that the investigated areas are free from radiological hazards and pose no significant risk to human health.

Keywords

Soil Samples Concentration Radium Equivalent Maysan.

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