Critical assessment of the deposition based dosimetric technique for radon/thoron decay products

Inhalation doses due to radon (222Rn) and thoron (220Rn) are predominantly contributed by their decay products and not due to the gases themselves. Decay product measurements are being carried out essentially by either short-term active measurement like by air-sampling on a substrate followed by alpha or beta counting or by continuous active monitoring techniques based on silicon barrier detector. However, due to non-availability of satisfactory passive measurement techniques for the progeny species, it has been a usual practice to estimate the long time averaged progeny concentration from measured gas concentration using an assumed equilibrium factor. To be accurate, one is required to measure the equilibrium factor in situ along with the gas concentration. This being not practical, the assigned equilibrium factor (0.4 for indoor and 0.8 for outdoor for 222Rn) approach has been an inevitable, though uncertain, part of the dosimetric strategies in both occupational and public domains. Further, in the case of thoron decay products however, equilibrium factor is of far more questionable validity. Thus, there is a need to shift from gas based dosimetric paradigm to that based on direct detection of progeny species