Assessment
Assessment of Natural radionuclides in Powdered milk Consumed in Saudi Arabia and Estimates of the Corresponding annual Effective Dose
Zain M. Alamoudi
Physics Department, Girls Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia
Abstract: This paper presents the activity concentrations of 40K, 226Ra and 232Th radionuclides measured in 20 brands of powdered milk samples collected from local markets of Saudi Arabia.The main detected activity corresponding to40K with average activity of 74.51 BqKg-1, while the average activities of 226Ra,232Th were 9.64 Bqkg-1, and 6.77 Bqkg-1, respectively. The determination of the radiation dose due to the consumption of these brands of milk are the main objectives of this program. The total average effective dose due to annual intake of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K from the ingestion of the powdered milk for children (age 2-7y,7-12y and 12-17y) were estimated to be 183.74 µSvy-1 198.34 µSvy-1 and 234.15 µSvy-1 and for adults (˃17Y) is 29.41 µSvy-1,which these values are lower than the ICRP recommended limit of 1.0 mSv y-1 for all ages. Results are compared with those of different countries worldwide. The resulting data may serve as base-line levels of activity concentration in powdered milk in the area of study.
[Zain M. Alamoudi. Assessment of natural radionuclides in Powdered milk Consumed in Saudi Arabia and Estimates of the Corresponding annual Effective Dose. J Am Sci 2013;9(6):267-273]. (ISSN: 1545-1003).http://www.jofamericanscience.org. 31
Key word: Natural Radioactivity, Milk, Heavy Metals, Ingestion dose, Hazard quotient.
