Measurement of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) in beach sand minerals using HPGe based gamma-ray spectrometry.

Sartandel, S.; Bara, S.; Chinnaesakki, S.; Tripathi, R.; Puranik, V.

This paper discusses the measurement of naturally occurring radioactivity materials (NORM) in beach sand minerals using high resolution gamma spectrometry. In India, the beach sand minerals of economic interest from coastal Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Orissa are enriched with NORM due to the occurrence of monazite deposits and heavy minerals such as zircon, ilmenite, magnetite, garnet, rutile etc. Since many of these ores are rich in Th and other radio elements, certification of radioactivity levels has become mandatory in recent years. The average activity concentrations of Ra in zircon, rutile and garnet were 3,531, 1,134 and 17 Bq kg, respectively. The average activity concentration of Th observed in zircon, rutile and garnet were 618, 454 and 64 Bq kg, respectively. Concentration of Ra, Th, and K in ilmenite ore ranged from 17.6-444 Bq kg, 80.4-1971 Bq kg and ≤5.5-25.0 Bq kg, respectively.

INDIA; BEACHROCK; MINERALS; GAMMA rays; RUTILE; HEAVY minerals; MONAZITE; RADIOACTIVITY

Journal of Radioanalytical & Nuclear Chemistry, 2012, Vol 294, Issue 3, p447

0236-5731

Academic Journal

10.1007/s10967-012-1695-0