Radon gas concentrations and exhalation rates in soil samples of Al-Muthanna governorate, Iraq

Background: Radon gas is one of the sources of radiation in nature. It is a radioactive gas whose danger lies in the fact that it can enter the human body through breathing, causing possible lung cancer. Materials and Methods: Radon gas was measured by using the Columbia resin-39 (CR-39) alpha track detectors in 42 locations of different nature industrial, residential, and agricultural and investigated the exhalation rates from surface soil. Results: The results demonstrated that the radon gas concentrations varied from (173.31 to 507.80 Bq forward slash m3) and the average value of the radon exhalation rate in soil was 0.026 Bq forward slash m2.h. Conclusion: The results can be used as baseline data to evaluate any changes in the radioactive background level due to human activities.