Comparative Study on the Contribution of Asbestos and Gypsum Building Materials to Environmental Radioactivity and Its Radiological Implications

Building materials have been studied and found to contain trace amount of natural radionuclides. In order to estimate the radiological impact to the dweller, the level of radionuclides present in asbestos and gypsum building materials available in Nigeria market were carried out using a well shielded and calibrated gamma spectrometry. The results obtained shown that the natural radionuclides of 238U, 232Th, and 40K are present in the building materials assayed, with activity concentration of 141.76 to 526.29 Bqkg-1, 2.14 to 7.94 Bqkg-1 and 9.89 to 14.23 Bqkg-1 for the gypsum samples and 221.64 to 513.38 Bqkg-1, 15.99 to 34.68 Bqkg-1 and 9.10 to 18.93 Bqkg-1 for the asbestos samples respectively. The average concentration obtained for samples are relatively lower than the worldwide average. The radiation hazard indices estimated are also lower than the international recommended values. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that the use of these materials in construction of dwellings may be considered safe for inhabitants and that the dwellers inside the buildings are not supposed to acquire any radiological complication in terms of radiation hazard. &nbsp