Radon exhalation rates and gamma doses from ceramic tiles

This study was carried out to assess the possible radiological hazard resulting from the use of zircon in glaze applied to tiles used in buildings. The 226Ra content of various stains and glazing compounds was measured using gamma spectroscopy and the 222Rn exhalation rates for these materials were measured using adsorption on activated charcoal. The radon exhalation rates were found to be close to or less than the minimum detectable values for the equipment used. This limit was much lower than the estimated exhalation rates, which were calculated assuming that the parameters controlling the emanation and diffusion of 222Rn in the materials studied were similar to those of soil. This implied that the 222Rn emanation coefficients and/or diffusion coefficients for most of the materials studied were very much lower than expected. Measurements on zircon powders showed that the 222Rn emanation coefficient for zircon was much lower than that for soil, indicating that only a small fraction of the 222Rn produced by the decay of 226Ra was able to escape from the zircon grains. The estimated increase in radon concentration in room air and the estimated external gamma radiation dose resulting from the use of zircon glaze are both much lower than the relevant action level and dose limit.