Natural radionuclides in drinking water and annual effective dose to infant, child, and adult

Abstract

This study assessed the annual effective dose from drinking water across different age categories, considering various sources of water. The water samples were collected from different locations, with the samples categorized into public drinking water systems, private wells, and bottled water. In the drinking water samples, no radionuclides other than Ra-226, Th-232, K-40, and H-3 were detected. The average tritium concentration in drinking water was measured at 1.84 Bq L−1, significantly below the permissible safety standards. The study indicated that infants received the highest annual effective dose from drinking water, averaging 0.88 mSv year−1, compared to 0.11 mSv*year−1 for children and 0.08 mSv*year−1 for adults. Among the different water sources, well water from Stublla village showed significantly elevated levels at 0.49 mSv*year−1. The highest contribution to the annual effective dose from the ingestion of drinking water comes from Ra-226, Th-232, and K-40, with average values of 1.72, 0.42, and 0.161 mSv*year−1, respectively. Despite these variations, the average annual effective doses from drinking water for infants, children, and adults were 0.81, 0.098, and 0.076 mSv year−1, respectively. Based on drinking water sources, the Stublla region had the highest yearly effective dosage, with an average value of 0.49 mSv year−1.