Radon diffusion coefficients in 360 waterproof materials of different chemical composition

This paper summarises the results of radon diffusion coefficient measurements in 360 common waterproof materials available throughout Europe. The materials were grouped into 26 categories according to their chemical composition. It was found that the diffusion coefficients of materials used for protecting houses against radon vary within eight orders from 10-15 to 10-8 m2 s-1. The lowest values were obtained for bitumen membranes with an Al carrier film and for ethylene vinyl acetate membranes. The highest radon diffusion coefficient values were discovered for sodium bentonite membranes, rubber membranes made of ethylene propylene diene monomer and polymer cement coatings. The radon diffusion coefficients for waterproofing widely used for protecting houses, i.e. flexible polyvinyl chloride, high-, low-density polyethylene, polypropylene and bitumen membranes, vary in the range from 3x10-12 to 3x10-11m2s-1.Tests were performed which confirmed that the radon diffusion coefficient is also an effective tool for verifying the air-tightness of joints. (authors)