Scholarlink

<p>Marine sediments in the Arabian Gulf serve as long-term sinks for both natural and anthropogenic radionuclides; however, comprehensive baseline data for Qatar’s coastline remain limited. This study focuses on determining the natural radioactivity levels in sediment around the Qatar Peninsula coast in the Arabian Gulf region and assessing the associated radiological hazard. A total of 14 sediment samples were collected from 1&#xa0;km, 4&#xa0;km, and 6&#xa0;km offshore distances along the east coast of Qatar and from shoreline locations along the west coast. The samples were dried and sieved with a 2&#xa0;mm mesh prior to analysis. Gamma spectrometry was used to quantify the activity concentration of radioactive elements, including <sup>226</sup>Ra, <sup>238</sup>U, <sup>235</sup>U, <sup>232</sup>Th, <sup>40</sup>K and <sup>137</sup>Cs. Equipment calibration was performed using the LabSOCS (Laboratory Sourceless Calibration Software) methodology to accommodate sample-specific geometries and densities. The results revealed that the mean activity concentrations of <sup>226</sup>Ra, <sup>238</sup>U, <sup>235</sup>U ,<sup>232</sup>Th, <sup>40</sup>K and <sup>137</sup>Cs were 7.426&#xa0;Bq/kg, 37.414&#xa0;Bq/kg, 2.16&#xa0;Bq/kg, 2.375&#xa0;Bq/kg, 64.773&#xa0;Bq/kg, and 0.236&#xa0;Bq/kg, respectively. The hazard index ranged from 0.026 to 0.427, with an average value of 0.092. The mean radium equivalent activity ranged from 5.576 to 88.652&#xa0;Bq/kg, with an average of 21.80&#xa0;Bq/kg, and the average dose rate was 6.819 nGy/h. The presence of <sup>137</sup>Cs, an anthropogenic radionuclide resulting from past nuclear activities, confirms human influence on the sediment radioactivity profile. Elemental and oxide composition was characterized by wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WD-XRF) and the results reveal that Potassium oxide shows a direct correlation with <sup>40</sup>K activity, while uranium and thorium activities are associated with phosphate and oxide minerals. The distribution of <sup>137</sup>Cs is primarily influenced by fine-grained sediments rich in aluminosilicates. This finding was further supported by SEM-EDS observations. Overall, these findings establish a radiological and geochemical baseline for Qatari marine sediments and confirm that current radioactivity levels pose no significant risk to environmental or public health.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Assessment of natural and anthropogenic radionuclides in marine sediments around the state of Qatar

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月1日

查看全文
  • Mosab Subeh,
  • Akshath Shetty,
  • Abdulaziz Al-Emadi,
  • Abdulaziz Al-Shammari,
  • Rakan Al-Marri,
  • Huda Al-Sulaiti

摘要

Marine sediments in the Arabian Gulf serve as long-term sinks for both natural and anthropogenic radionuclides; however, comprehensive baseline data for Qatar’s coastline remain limited. This study focuses on determining the natural radioactivity levels in sediment around the Qatar Peninsula coast in the Arabian Gulf region and assessing the associated radiological hazard. A total of 14 sediment samples were collected from 1 km, 4 km, and 6 km offshore distances along the east coast of Qatar and from shoreline locations along the west coast. The samples were dried and sieved with a 2 mm mesh prior to analysis. Gamma spectrometry was used to quantify the activity concentration of radioactive elements, including 226Ra, 238U, 235U, 232Th, 40K and 137Cs. Equipment calibration was performed using the LabSOCS (Laboratory Sourceless Calibration Software) methodology to accommodate sample-specific geometries and densities. The results revealed that the mean activity concentrations of 226Ra, 238U, 235U ,232Th, 40K and 137Cs were 7.426 Bq/kg, 37.414 Bq/kg, 2.16 Bq/kg, 2.375 Bq/kg, 64.773 Bq/kg, and 0.236 Bq/kg, respectively. The hazard index ranged from 0.026 to 0.427, with an average value of 0.092. The mean radium equivalent activity ranged from 5.576 to 88.652 Bq/kg, with an average of 21.80 Bq/kg, and the average dose rate was 6.819 nGy/h. The presence of 137Cs, an anthropogenic radionuclide resulting from past nuclear activities, confirms human influence on the sediment radioactivity profile. Elemental and oxide composition was characterized by wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WD-XRF) and the results reveal that Potassium oxide shows a direct correlation with 40K activity, while uranium and thorium activities are associated with phosphate and oxide minerals. The distribution of 137Cs is primarily influenced by fine-grained sediments rich in aluminosilicates. This finding was further supported by SEM-EDS observations. Overall, these findings establish a radiological and geochemical baseline for Qatari marine sediments and confirm that current radioactivity levels pose no significant risk to environmental or public health.