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Hierarchical modeling of indoor radon concentration: how much do geology and building factors matter?

Hierarchical modeling of indoor radon concentration: how much do geology and building factors matter?

Authors :
Borgoni R
De Francesco D
De Bartolo D
Tzavidis N
Source :
Journal of environmental radioactivity [J Environ Radioact] 2014 Dec; Vol. 138, pp. 227-37. Date of Electronic Publication: 2014 Sep 27.
Publication Year :
2014

Abstract

Radon is a natural gas known to be the main contributor to natural background radiation exposure and only second to smoking as major leading cause of lung cancer. The main concern is in indoor environments where the gas tends to accumulate and can reach high concentrations. The primary contributor of this gas into the building is from the soil although architectonic characteristics, such as building materials, can largely affect concentration values. Understanding the factors affecting the concentration in dwellings and workplaces is important both in prevention, when the construction of a new building is being planned, and in mitigation when the amount of Radon detected inside a building is too high. In this paper we investigate how several factors, such as geologic typologies of the soil and a range of building characteristics, impact on indoor concentration focusing, in particular, on how concentration changes as a function of the floor level. Adopting a mixed effects model to account for the hierarchical nature of the data, we also quantify the extent to which such measurable factors manage to explain the variability of indoor radon concentration.<br /> (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1879-1700
Volume :
138
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Journal of environmental radioactivity
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
25261869
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvrad.2014.08.022