Natural radioactivity assessment of surface soil collected from Poovar village of Kerala, India

The activities of natural radionuclides ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K of the outdoor surface soil in the Poovar village of living environment were determined using NaI(Tl) based gamma spectrometric measurement method and radiation hazards in the study area are evaluated. The activities of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K ranges from below detectable level to 8.38 BqKg^-1, 6.32 BqKg^-1 to 17.21 BqKg^-1 and 16.74 BqKg^-1 54.05 BqKg^-1, respectively. The radium equivalent activity (Ra_eq) and the radiological parameters such as internal and external hazard indices, absorbed dose rate, indoor and outdoor annual effective dose and representative level index were also determined from the estimated value of the specific activity of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K. All the samples investigated are within the recommended safety limit and hence do not pose any radiation hazards. This study is important for radiological mapping of the study area in future. (author)