Measurement of Natural Radioactivity and Hazard Indices in Agriculture Soil Using Statistical Approach

Abstract

Naturally occurring radionuclides such as ²³⁸U, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K activity concentrations were analyzed using the high purity germanium detector NaI(Tl). The samples were collected randomly from several sites in Kanyakumari district at a penetration of about 0-10, 10-30, 30-50 cm depth. The average activity concentration of ²³⁸U, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K were found to be 63.204±4.42 Bq/ Kg,85.14±5.10Bq/ Kg and 812.39±48.74 Bq/ Kg. The radiological indices such as absorbed dose rate, annual effective dose rate, radium equivalent activity, life time cancer risk and hazard indices were evaluated. The statistical method was used to investigate the relationship between the calculated radiological parameters and the radionuclides. The result values will also serve as a baseline radiometric data in the area for the future studies.