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Assessment of radon concentration and heavy metal contamination in groundwater of Udhampur district, Jammu & Kashmir, India

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Abstract

Radon concentration was measured in water samples of 41 different locations from Udhampur district of Jammu & Kashmir, India, by using RAD7 and Smart RnDuo monitor. The variation of radon concentration in water ranged from 1.44 ± 0.31 to 63.64 ± 2.88 Bq L−1, with a mean value of 28.73 Bq L−1 using RAD7 and 0.64 ± 0.28 to 52.65 ± 2.50 Bq L−1, with a mean value of 20.30 Bq L−1 using Smart RnDuo monitor, respectively. About 17.07% of the studied water samples recorded to display elevated radon concentration above the reference range suggested by United Nation Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiations (UNSCEAR). The mean annual effective dose of these samples was determined, and 78.95% samples were found to be within the safe limits set by World Health Organisation (WHO) and European Council (EU). The study revealed good agreement between the values obtained with two methods. Heavy metals (Zn, Cd, Fe, Cu, Ni, As, Hg, Co, Pb and Cr) were determined in water samples by microwave plasma atomic emission spectrometer, and their correlation with radon content was also analysed.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the Board of Research in Nuclear Science (BRNS), Department of Atomic Energy (DAE-BRNS), for providing financial assistance (Ref. No. 2013/36/60 BRNS). We likewise express our appreciation to DAV College, Amritsar, National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar and Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar for providing essential facilities to this work. Our special thanks to the occupants of study area for their cooperation during fieldwork.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, DAV College, Amritsar, Punjab, 143001, India

    Ajay Kumar & Sumit Sharma

  2. Department of Physics, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, Punjab, 144011, India

    Sumit Sharma & Rohit Mehra

  3. Central Ground Water Board, North Western Himalayan Region, Jammu, J&K, India

    Priya Kanwar

  4. Radiological Physics and Advisory Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, 400085, India

    Rosaline Mishra

  5. Department of Chemistry, Centre for Advanced Studies, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab, 143001, India

    Inderpreet Kaur

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  1. Ajay Kumar
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Correspondence to Ajay Kumar.

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Kumar, A., Sharma, S., Mehra, R. et al. Assessment of radon concentration and heavy metal contamination in groundwater of Udhampur district, Jammu & Kashmir, India. Environ Geochem Health 40, 815–831 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-017-0027-2

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