THE SCREENING INDOOR RADON AND PRELIMINARY STUDY OF INDOOR THORON CONCENTRATION LEVELS IN KUWAIT

Abstract

Indoor measurements of radon and thoron in Kuwait were conducted during the years 2015 and 2016. In this study, 65 dwellings were selected for the long-term radon–thoron survey using passive nuclear track monitors. The monitors (at least one) were used at various locations in the dwellings for 83–306 days. Some measurements were also repeated at the same locations in different seasons. This current study is a preliminary thoron survey with relatively small sample size. The results showed that the range of thoron concentration was from below the lower limit of detection to 35 Bq m⁻³, whereas the range of radon concentration was within 10–202 Bq m⁻³. Furthermore, 22% of the radon results exceeded the WHO radon reference level of 100 Bq m⁻³. The analysis of variance showed a correlation between indoor radon concentration and the season. However, the thoron measurements were rather limited and the values were low. In addition, the relationship was investigated between radon and thoron concentrations involving the floor levels and the type of ventilation systems used.