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Corresponding Author

Sardar Qader Othman

Authors ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5445-9501

Document Type

Original Article

Abstract

Radon gas can cause lung harm, leading to extensive research on the biological effects of radon exposure in human lungs under various environmental conditions. The study estimates radon progeny doses for workers in Erbil city's building materials industries, focusing on alpha particle energy deposition, particle clearance, and lung deposition. Using a home condition of 1 Bq.m-3, radon progeny particle-absorbed doses in the trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, alveolar-interstitial sections, and lungs were determined in the first scenario. The 1 Bq.m-3 is replaced with the radon level for each factory to prepare its atmosphere in the second scenario. For the first scenario, the absorbed dose was discovered to be 8.02 in the trachea and bronchi (BB) section, 9.20 in the bronchioles (bb) area, 0.114 in the alveolar-interstitial (AI) section, and 5.78 mGy.WLM-1 in the whole lung. While, for the typical environment of various factories (second scenario), the doses of all regions (BB region, bb region, AI region, and whole lung) ranged from 214.29, 245.82, 3.04, and 154.38 mGy.WLM-1 for workers at the gypsum factory to 1425.39, 1635.11, 20.26, and 1062.92 mGy.WLM-1, respectively, for workers at the red brick 1 factory. In accordance with the scientific literature, the dosimetry method yields a dose conversion factor (DCF) of 13.87 mSv WLM-1 for lung in the first scenario. Advanced dosimetry analysis of breathed radon progeny can reveal structural, biological, and ecological factors affecting absorbed doses and enhance defense against irradiation, especially in high-radon regions.

Keywords

lung dosimetry, radon progeny, absorbed dose, radon concentration

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