JOURNAL OF RADIOANALYTICAL AND NUCLEAR CHEMISTRY, vol.292, no.3, pp.999-1006, 2012 (SCI-Expanded)
This study is part of an effort to assess the level of background radiation for Erzincan Province of eastern Turkey. Radionuclide activity concentrations in soil samples were measured through gamma-ray spectrometry and the average activities were determined as 8.93, 11.39, 281.94, and 9.52 Bq/kg for the radionuclides U-238, Th-232, K-40(,) and Cs-137, respectively. The average annual effective dose from these natural radioactivity sources (U-238 series, Th-232 series and K-40,) was calculated to be 27.9 mu Sv. Radioactivity levels in drinking and potable water samples were studied using a multi-channel low level proportional counter. The average gross alpha activity concentration was found to be 0.0477 Bq/L (min. 0.007 Bq/L; max. 0.421 Bq/L) and the average gross beta activity was measured as 0.104 Bq/L (min. 0.008 Bq/L; max. 1.806 Bq/L). These values lead to an average annual effective dose of 9.75 mu Sv from the alpha emitters and 56.34 mu Sv from the beta emitting radionuclides in water. The radioactivity levels in the water samples investigated were found to comply with the reference levels recommended by WHO and the regulations set forth by the Turkish Health Ministry.