Building Materials: Assessment of the Radon Exhalation and the Radiological Risk Due to Natural Radioactivity Content
A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sciences".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2025 | Viewed by 1225
Special Issue Editors
Interests: environmental radioactivity; gamma spectrometry; liquid scintillation; alpha spectrometry; gas radon detection; emanometry; radiation protection; ionizing radiations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: applied geology; mapping geogenic radon potential; radon monitoring network design; land planning
Interests: structural and morphological properties of materials; spectroscopic and microscopic characterization of micro- and nanostructured materials; micro-Raman spectroscopy; X-ray diffraction; optical spectroscopy; atomic force microscopy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: radon monitoring and human exposure; environmental radioactivity; radon risk; radon health assessment; human biomonitoring; biomonitors for radioactivity exposure; biological dosimetry; thoron risk assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: heritage science; diagnostic analysis of cultural heritage materials; formulation of innovative products for conservation of cultural heritage
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas whom long-term exposure to can increase the risk of developing lung cancer. This concern has been considered in detail by the European Union (EU) in the Directive 2013/59 EURATOM, which highlights the importance of investigating all potential sources of indoor radon, including building materials. Assessing the release of radon from building materials is particularly relevant in the field of cultural heritage, as many historical constructions are constituted by natural stones potentially enriched with radon precursors. The development of a systematic strategy for assessing the radon content in building materials is crucial for decision makers, since identifying vulnerable buildings enables the implementation of well-defined protection measures. To assess the possible radiological health risk posed by radon, it is essential to calculate external hazard indexes based on the natural radioactivity content, according to the European recommendations. Furthermore, the geological characteristics of building materials, such as their origin, textural and compositional analyses, porosity, geochemistry, permeability, crystalline abundance, and degradation attitude, must be considered, as these properties are fundamental in correlating with radon exhalation rates.
This Special Issue, entitled “Building Materials: Assessment of the Radon Exhalation and the Radiological Risk due to Natural Radioactivity Content”, aims to assess building materials. It also supports the development of radon reduction techniques, addressing the management of building materials from the perspectives of radiation protection in health, research and the environment. This Special Issue topic falls within the framework of the PRIN 2022 PNRR ATHENA project (A novel approach Towards the management of building materials of particular Historical–artistic interest: assessment of the radon Exhalation and the radiological risk due to Natural radioActivity content), funded by the European Union’s Next Generation EU.
Topics of interest include (but are not restricted to):
- building materials;
- radon exhalation;
- environmental radioactivity;
- radiation protection from healthcare to environment and scientific research.
Dr. Francesco Caridi
Dr. Stefania Da Pelo
Dr. Giuliana Faggio
Dr. Michele Guida
Dr. Silvestro Antonio Ruffolo
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- building materials
- radon exhalation
- environmental radioactivity
- radiation protection from healthcare to environment and scientific research
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