2. Methods for measuring natural radioactivity in building materials
The mass activities contained in building materials are low, so obtaining accurate measurements remains a delicate matter.
2.1 Conventional gamma-ray spectrometry
Usually, the three isotopes used to calculate the index are determined (by gamma spectrometry) on a sample. With this technique, the result obtained for index I shows a clear separation between the most common natural materials and those obtained by recycling from an industrial process: coal fly ash, phosphogypsum, blast furnace slag. Table 1 reproduces the values collected by the RP112 publication. It may be considered that if the unit index value is taken as the limit for unrestricted marking, recycled products cannot be freely marked on...
The Ultimate Scientific and Technical Reference
This article is included in
Metal manufacturing processes and recycling
This offer includes:
Knowledge Base
Updated and enriched with articles validated by our scientific committees
Services
A set of exclusive tools to complement the resources
Practical Path
Operational and didactic, to guarantee the acquisition of transversal skills
Doc & Quiz
Interactive articles with quizzes, for constructive reading
Methods for measuring natural radioactivity in building materials
Longitudinal characterization of Dunkirk production
Bibliography
- (1) - Élément pour la caractérisation radiologique des matières et effluents en application de l'arrêté du 25 mai 2005. - Rapport IRSN (2008).
Also in our database
Standards and norms
- "Measuring radioactivity in the environment - Soil – Part 3: Test method for gamma-emitting radionuclides by gamma spectrometry". - NF EN ISO 18589-3 - mars 2018
- "Water quality – Application of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) – Part 2: Determination of selected elements including uranium isotopes". - NF EN ISO 17294-2 - octobre 2016
Regulations
Council Directive 2013/59/Euratom of December 5, 2013 laying down basic safety standards for health protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionizing radiation and repealing Directives 89/618/Euratom, 90/641/Euratom, 96/29/Euratom, 97/43/Euratom and 2003/122/Euratom.
Regulation RP112: radiation protection principles concerning the natural radioactivity of building materials.
...
The Ultimate Scientific and Technical Reference
