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The utilization of phosphorite deposits as an industrial resource is of paramount importance, and its sustainability largely depends on ensuring safe and responsible practices. This study aims to evaluate the suitability of phosphorite deposits for industrial applications such as the production of phosphoric acid and phosphatic fertilizers. To achieve this goal, the study meticulously examines the geochemical characteristics of the deposits, investigates the distribution of natural Radioactivity within them, and assesses the potential radiological risk associated with their use. The phosphorites are massive and collected from different beds within the Duwi Formation at the Hamadat mining area. They are grain-supported and composed of phosphatic pellets, bioclasts (bones), non-phosphatic minerals, and cement. Geochemically, phosphorites contain high concentrations of P 2 O 5 (23.59–28.36 wt.%) and CaO (40.85–44.35 wt.%), with low amounts of Al 2 O 3 (0.23–0.51 wt.%), TiO 2 (0.01–0.03 wt.%), Fe 2 O 3 (1.14–2.28 wt.%), Na 2 O (0.37–1.19 wt.%), K 2 O (0.03–0.12 wt.%), and MnO (0.08–0.18 wt.%), suggesting the low contribution of the detrital material during their deposition. Moreover, they belong to contain enhanced U concentration (55–128 ppm). They are also enriched with Sr, Ba, Cr, V, and Zn and depleted in Th, Zr, and Rb, which strongly supports the low detrital input during the formation of the Hamadat phosphorites. The high Radioactivity of the studied phosphorites is probably due to the widespread occurrence of phosphatic components (e.g., apatite) that accommodate U in high concentrations. Gamma spectrometry based on NaI (Tl) crystal 3×3 has been used to measure occurring radionuclides in the phosphorite samples. The results indicate that the radioactive concentrations’ average values of 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K are 184.18±9.19, 125.82±6.29, and 63.82±3.19 Bq Kg -1 , respectively. Additionally, evaluations have been made of the radiological hazards. The calculated risk indicators exceeded the recommended national and world averages. The data obtained will serve as a reference for follow-up studies to evaluate the effectiveness of the Radioactivity of phosphatic materials collected from the Hamdat mine area.

In this study, the specific activities of the radionuclides 226 Ra, 232 Th, 40 K, and 137 Cs in popular pasta samples were measured. The risk indices of the annual effective dose received (AED) and the permitted consumption rate (CR) were calculated.12 samples of pasta were collected from the food stores of Arak city. The specific activities of the mentioned radionuclides were measured by gamma-ray spectrometry using a high-purity germanium (HPGe) detector with a relative efficiency of 80%. The specific activities of radionuclides ranged from the minimum detectable activity (MDA) to 2.55 for 226 Ra, from MDA to 19.84 for 232 Th, and from 44.3 to 88.2 for 40 K in Bq/kg. The specific activity of 137 Cs for all samples was ≤ MDA (0.88 Bq/kg). The average values for annual effective dose and allowed consumption rate were calculated as 9.31 µSv/y and 491 kg/y. The results indicate that the radiological parameters for the analyzed pasta samples are well below international safety limits, suggesting no significant radiological health risk to consumers.

The concentrations of primordial radionuclides (226Ra, 232Th and 40K) in commonly used building materials (brick, cement and sand), the raw materials of cement and the by-products of coal-fired power plants (fly ash) collected from various manufacturers and suppliers in Bangladesh were determined via gamma-ray spectrometry using an HPGe detector. The results showed that the mean concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in all studied samples slightly exceeded the typical world average values of 50 Bq kg(-1), 50 Bq kg(-1) and 500 Bq kg(-1), respectively. The activity concentrations (especially 226Ra) of fly-ash-containing cement in this study were found to be higher than those of fly-ash-free cement. To evaluate the potential radiological risk to individuals associated with these building materials, various radiological hazard indicators were calculated. The radium equivalent activity values for all samples were found to be lower than the recommended limit for building materials of 370 Bq kg(-1), with the exception of the fly ash. For most samples, the values of the alpha index and the radiological hazard (external and internal) indices were found to be within the safe limit of 1. The mean indoor absorbed dose rate was observed to be higher than the population-weighted world average of 84 nGy h(-1), and the corresponding annual effective dose for most samples fell below the recommended upper dose limit of 1 mSv y(-1). For all investigated materials, the values of the gamma index were found to be greater than 0.5 but less than 1, indicating that the gamma dose contribution from the studied building materials exceeds the exemption dose criterion of 0.3 mSv y(-1) but complies with the upper dose principle of 1 mSv y(-1).

The essential variables used to measure radiological pollution and related human health concerns include radionuclides’ distribution and transfer factors (TFs) in plants. The TF is the radionuclide’s specific activity (Bq kg −1 ) ratio in the plant to its dirt equivalent (in dry weight). This research aimed to determine the radionuclides’ soil-to-plant TF, to evaluate natural radionuclides’ transfer level from soil to a selected cultivated crop (wheat) in the Shaqlawa district of Erbil Province, Iraq. The study randomly collected soil and cultivated plant samples from various locations. The collected samples were analyzed using HPGe gamma spectroscopy. The 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K radionuclides, the average TFs from soil to plant root were 0.032, 0.033, and 0.405, respectively. TF values indicate that approximately 3.2%, 3.3%, and 40.5% of 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K, respectively, were transferred from the soil to the wheat, following the order of 40 K (0.40) > 232 Th (0.033) and 226 Ra (0.032). All TFs were below the global standard of unity. A positive Pearson correlation was found among the three radionuclides in soil and plant samples. The three radionuclides were detected in soil and wheat samples, and the positive correlation among them suggested they originated from a common source in each environmental matrix. The results confirmed that the TF values from soil to wheat are safe for agricultural lands in the Shaklawa district, with no immediate radiological health implications.

Impact assessment of building materials is a focused topic in the field of radioecology. A radiological survey has conducted to monitor radioactivity of most common building materials in Semnan Province, Iran, and assess the radiation risk. Activity concentrations of 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K were measured in 29 samples including nine commonly used building materials that were collected from local suppliers and manufacturers, using a high purity germanium gamma-ray detector. The activity concentrations of 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K varied from 6.7±1 to 43.6±9, 5.9±1 to 60±11, and 28.5±3 to 1085±113 Bq kg −1 with averages of 26.8±5, 22.7±4, and 322.4±4 Bq kg −1 , respectively. By applying multivariate statistical approach (Pearson correlation, cluster, and principal component analyses (PCA)), the radiological health hazard parameters were analyzed to obtain similarities and correlations between the various samples. The Pearson correlation showed that the 226 Ra distribution in the samples is controlled by changing the 232 Th concentration. The variance of 95.58% obtained from PCA resulted that the main radiological health hazard parameters exist due to the concentration of 226 Ra and 232 Th. The resulting dendrogram of cluster analysis also shows a well coincidence with the correlation analysis.

This is the first attempt in the world to depict the vertical distribution of radionuclides in the soil samples along several heights (900 feet, 1550 feet, and 1650 feet) of Marayon Tong hill in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bandarban by HPGe gamma-ray spectrometry. The average activity concentrations of 232 Th, 226 Ra, and 40 K were found to be 37.15 ± 3.76 Bqkg −1 , 19.69 ± 2.15 Bqkg −1 , and 347.82 ± 24.50 Bqkg −1 , respectively, where in most cases, 232 Th exceeded the world average value of 30 Bqkg −1 . According to soil characterization, soils ranged from slightly acidic to moderately acidic, with low soluble salts. The radium equivalent activity, outdoor and indoor absorbed dose rate, external and internal hazard indices, external and internal effective dose rates, gamma level index, and excess lifetime cancer risk were evaluated and found to be below the recommended or world average values; but a measurable activity of 137 Cs was found at soils collected from ground level and at an altitude of 1550 feet, which possibly arises from the nuclear fallout. The evaluation of cumulative radiation doses to the inhabitants via periodic measurement is recommended due to the elevated levels of 232 Th.This pioneering work in mapping the vertical distribution of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORMs) can be an essential factual baseline data for the scientific community that may be used to evaluate the variation in NORMs in the future, especially after the commissioning of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh in 2024.

It has been analyzed in this article the radioactivity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K and radiological hazard parameters in different types of cements commonly used in Poland and available on the Polish market. The radiological hazard parameters are, in particular, absorbed gamma dose rate, annual effective dose, radium equivalent activity, the external hazard index, and the gamma and alpha indices. The radionuclide activities of the most important radionuclides 226Ra, 232Th, 40K have been determined by gamma-ray spectrometry with the use of two kinds of spectrometers of different operational parameters. One performed also measurements on 30-day and 45-day aged samples as to verify if there is a statistically significant difference in radioactivity concentration for shorter and longer aging time. The radioactivity concentrations in the cement samples ranged from 21.7–75.7 Bq·kg−1 for 226Ra, 12.3–47.3 Bq·kg−1 for 232Th to 123–430 Bq·kg−1 for 40K. The radiological parameters in cement samples were calculated as follows: mean radium equivalent activity Raeq = 127 Bq·kg−1, mean absorbed gamma dose rate D = 115 nGy·h−1, mean annual effective dose E = 570 µSv·y−1, external hazard index Hex = 0.32, internal hazard index Hin = 0.51, mean activity concentration index Iγ = 0.47 and mean alpha index Iα = 0.28. The results were compared with the reported data from other countries and the international standard values given by European Commission (EC) and United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR 2000). Finally, thorough statistical analysis has been performed.

The current contribution goal is to measure the distribution of the radionuclide within the exposed rock units of southwestern Sinai, Seih-Sidri area, and assess the radiological risk. Gneisses, older granites, younger gabbro, younger granites, and post granitic dikes (pegmatites) are the main rock units copout in the target area. Radioactivity, as well as radiological implications, were investigated for forty-three samples from gneisses (seven hornblende biotite gneiss and seven biotite gneiss), older granites (fourteen samples), and younger granites (fifteen samples of syenogranites) using NaI (Tl) scintillation detector. External and internal hazard index (Hex, Hin), internal and external level indices (Iα, Iγ), absorbed dose rates in the air (D), the annual effective dose equivalent (AED), radium equivalent activity (Raeq), annual gonadal dose (AGDE), excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR), and the value of Upper Continental Core 232Th/238U mass fractions were determined from the obtained values of 238U, 232Th and 40K for the examined rocks of Seih-Sidri area. The average 238U mg/kg in hornblende biotite gneiss and biotite gneiss, older granites, and syenogranites is 2.3, 2.1, 2.7, and 8.4 mg/kg, respectively, reflecting a relatively higher concentration of uranium content in syenogranites. The results suggest that using these materials may pose risks to one’s radiological health.

Humans are constantly exposed to radiation from their natural environment including soil and gamma radiation has harmful effects on them, so determination of radioactivity concentration in soil are very important. The present study aims to measure the activity concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclides 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K in urban soil samples collected from thirty different areas of Dhaka city. The analyzed was performed using a High-Purity Germanium (HPGe) gamma-ray spectrometer. The results showed that the mean activity concentrations of 226 Ra, 232 Th, and 40 K were found 24.2 ± 1.0 Bqkg -1 , 52.0 ± 2.0 Bqkg -1 , and 352 ± 11 Bqkg -1 , respectively. The average concentrations of 226 Ra and 40 K fall below the internationally recommended safety limits of 35 Bqkg -1 and 400 Bqkg -1 , respectively, while 232 Th value exceeded the recommended limit of 30 Bqkg -1 by approximately 1.7 times. The mean value of radium equivalent activity (Ra eq ) was calculated as 125.7 Bqkg -1 , which was far below the global safety threshold of 370 Bqkg -1 . The estimated outdoor effective dose rates were 0.070 mSvy -1 and below the worldwide recommended limit of 1 mSvy -1 . Additionally, excess life time cancer risk (ELCR) was below than the internationally accepted limit of 0.29 × 10 −3 . All things considered, the study is the first comprehensive dataset of urban soil in the area and revealed that there are no immediate health dangers due to the low radioactive hazard indices.

Workers and dwellers around quarrying sites are exposed to naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORMs) during various activities done on the rock and earth crust. This study investigated the spatial distribution and radiological health effects of quarrying activities in ten quarry sites in three districts (Odeda, Ajebo, and Ijebu Ode) around Ogun State, Nigeria. The NORMs ( 40 K, 238 U, 232 Th) were assessed using a gamma spectrometer with a NaI(Tl) detector. The radiological hazards of NORMs were assessed and statistically analyzed. The activity concentration of NORMs (Bq/kg) ranged from 40 K (76.8 ± 44.8–2647.9 ± 179.4), 238 U (3.2 ± 1.8–55.4 ± 24.9), and 232 Th (5.2 ± 3.9–244.4 ± 89.8) revealing 70% of all samples above the world average limit 420( 40 K), 33( 238 U), and 45 ( 232 Th). The activity concentration of NORMs in all the sites followed in the order 238 U <  232 Th <  40 K. The radiological and health parameter ranges for the adsorbed dose rate (D R ) 3.0–339.92 (nGy/h), radium equivalent (Ra eq ) 5.88–739.4 (Bq/kg), annual effective dose equivalent outdoor (AEDEout) 3.72–417.16(µSvy −1 ), excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR × 10 −3 ) 0.01–1.46, and exposure rate (ER) 13.10–1531.47(µRh −1 ). The radiological hazard parameters are 2–3 times higher than their world averages in most of the samples thus discouraging the usage of the soil for building and ecological activities. This study showed that radionuclides are priority pollutants with high impact and with high exposure risk tendencies in all the quarry sites investigated and therefore unsuitable for ecological and building activities.