Measurement of radioactivity levels and assessment of radioactivity hazards of soil samples in Karaman, Turkey

WOS:000347733700024PubMed:24587487In this study, the levels of the natural and artificial radioactivity in soil samples collected from surrounding of Karaman in Turkey were measured. Activity concentrations of the concerned radionuclides were determined by gamma-ray spectrometry using a high-purity germanium detector with a relative efficiency of 40% at 1.332 MeV. The results obtained for the U-238 series (Ra-226, Pb-214 and Bi-214), Th-232 series (Ac-228), K-40 and fission product Cs-137 are discussed. To evaluate the radiological hazard of radioactivity in samples, the radium equivalent activity (Ra-eq), the absorbed dose rate (D), the annual effective dose and the external (H-ex) and internal hazard index (H-in) were calculated and presented in comparison with the data collected from different areas in the world and Turkey.Akdeniz University Scientific Research Projects Coordination UnitAkdeniz University; Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University Scientific Research ProjectKaramanoglu Mehmetbey University [23-M-13]This work is supported by Akdeniz University Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit and Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University Scientific Research Project 23-M-13