Exploring radon emanation fraction in dry and wet conditions: a study in the main Boundary Thrust Region of Garhwal Himlaya

This study focuses on investigating the release and dispersion of radon in diverse samples obtained from four designated sites (Rajpur, Maldevta, Kalsi and Dugadda) situated within the Main Boundary Thrust region of Garhwal Himalaya, Uttarakhand, India. In the Current research, we measured different radioactive parameters; including natural radioactivity (Radium content) and Mass exhalation rate. Using these measurements, we calculated the radon emanation fractions in 82 samples from four sampling sites. The radium content exhibited a range of 39 ± 8 Bq kg⁻¹ to 442 ± 50 Bq kg⁻¹, averaging at 88.2 ± 62.2 Bq kg⁻¹. The Radon Exhalation rate displayed a range of 8.56 ± 3.1 mBq kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ to 144.9 ± 12.5 mBq kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ with an average rate of 48.4 ± 29.2 mBq kg⁻¹ h⁻¹. The variation in radon emanation fraction ranged from 0.62 to 8.52, with an average of 3.25 ± 1.60. Initially, the samples were categorized into rock and soil groups. To introduce an additional dimension, a secondary classification based on dry and wet conditions were subsequently incorporated. An increase in radon emanation fraction was observed for the wet samples due to higher moisture content.