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The decay chain of uranium includes radon, a noble gas. When uranium in the soil decays to radon, it may seep into houses. This can be a significant source of radiation exposure. Most of the exposure comes from the decay products of radon, but some comes from alpha decay of the radon itself. If radon in the air in your home is at the maximum permissible level, the gas in your lungs will have an activity of about 0.22 Bq. Each decay generates an alpha particle with 5.5 MeV of energy, and essentially all that energy is deposited in lung tissue.
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The decay chain of uranium includes radon, a noble gas. When uranium in the soil decays to radon, it may seep into houses; this can be a significant source of radiation exposure. Most of the exposure comes from the decay products of radon, but some comes from alpha decay of the radon itself. If radon in the air in your home is at the maximum permissible level, the gas in your lungs will have an activity of about $0.22 \mathrm{Bq} .$ Each decay generates an alpha particle with $5.5 \mathrm{MeV}$ of energy, and essentially all that energy is deposited in lung tissue. Over the course of 1 year, what will be the dose equivalent in $\mathrm{Sv}$ to the approximately 0.90 kg mass of your lungs?
The decay chain of uranium includes radon, a noble gas. When uranium in the soil decays to radon, it may seep into houses; this can be a significant source of radiation exposure. Most of the exposure comes from the decay products of radon, but some comes from alpha decay of the radon itself. If radon in the air in your home is at the maximum permissible level, the gas in your lungs will have an activity of about 0.22 Bq. Each decay generates an alpha particle with 5.5 MeV of energy, and essentially all that energy is deposited in lung tissue. Over the course of 1 year, what will be the dose equivalent in Sv to the approximately 0.90 kg mass of your lungs?
Penny R.
Uranium and radium are found in many rocky soils throughout the world. Both undergo radioactive decay, and one of the products is radon-2222, the heaviest noble gas $\left(t_{1 / 2}=\right.$ 3.82 days). Inhalation of this gas contributes to many lung cancers. According to Environmental Protection Agency recommendations, the level of radioactivity from radon in homes should not exceed 4.0 $\mathrm{pCi} / \mathrm{L}$ of air. (a) What is the safe level of radon in Bq/L of air? (b) A home has a radon measurement of 41.5 $\mathrm{pCi} / \mathrm{L}$ . The owner vents the basement in such a way that no more radon enters the living area. What is the activity of the radon remaining in the room air (in $\mathrm{Bq} / \mathrm{L}$ ) after 9.5 days? (c) How many more days does it take to reach the EPA recommended level?
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