Fast Fourier Transform power spectrum of radon activity
Year: 2018
Type: article
Abstract: Measurement of outdoor Radon-222 (222Rn) activity at National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL), Gadanki, India, is carried out using Alpha GUARD PQ 2000 PRO from October 2011 to July 2014 and analyzed. The general inspection of time series reveals the decomposition of periodicity, significant diurnal and seasonal trend, and correlation between the measured and dependent variables. Detailed analyses have revealed that the Fast Fourier transform power spectrum of 222Rn has several energy peaks at different time scales that indicate the daily evolution of radon concentration. The composite seasonal plot shows that at least 21% of the average monthly radon concentration can be attributable to nonlocal effects. In a case study, it is observed that the time evolution of precipitation is one of the important governing factors of radon concentration near the surface. The activity of radon varies from 2 to 65 Bq/m3 with a mean of 12.35 Bq/m3 and ambient gamma dose levels varied between 141.8 and 244 nSv/h with a mean of 188.8 nSv/h.
Authors: Kamsali Nagaraja, KCharan Kumar, TRajendra Prasad, MVenkat Ratnam
Language: English
Subfield: Radiation
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W2807035656