Reporting Gross Alpha and Beta Counts in Water Samples of Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria
Bawa-Boyi, E. U. *
Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Federal University Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria.
John, J. J.
Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Federal University Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria.
Onudibia, M. E.
Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Federal University Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
This research is aimed at determining the gross alpha and beta concentration in certain selected table water samples from some of the most widely used table water sources in Wukari, Taraba State in a bid to improve the general well-being of the inhabitants of Wukari, Taraba State and Nigeria at large. In this study, the activity concentration of gross alpha and gross beta in water samples from seven (7) widely used table water sources in Wukari were selected. The samples were evaporated and counted for Gross Alpha and Beta using MPC 2000 model gas filled proportional counter. Results show that the range of alpha activity of the selected water samples range from 0.00305±0.005Bq/L to 0.0174±0.006Bq/L with a geometric mean of 0.010336±0.006Bq/L. The range of beta activity of the selected water samples range from 0.00202±0.002Bq/L to 0.00868±0.003Bq/L with a geometric mean of 0.00563± 0.002714Bq/L. With the World Health Organization (WHO) threshold or screening levels for alpha and beta radioactivity concentration in water being 0.5Bq/L and 1.0Bq/L respectively, the results from the analysis show that none of the collected table water samples exceeded the screening levels for alpha and beta concentrations in drinking water recommended by The World Health Organization. However, a significant reduction was observed in the gross alpha and beta count for the purified versions of some of the water samples analyzed. Also, the average annual committed effective dose from intake water was between 0.00164mSv and 0.02777mSv which is lower than the recommended reference level for ingested dose for drinkable water
Keywords: Gross alpha, gross beta, water samples, annual effective dose
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