The effects of some soil characteristics on radon emanation and diffusion

The effects of moisture content, grain size, temperature, major elemental composition, and the pH of soils on the radon emanation and diffusion coefficients were evaluated in this study. The emanation and diffusion coefficients are strongly influenced by moisture content and grain size. The radon emanation coefficient increased and the diffusion coefficient decreased with decreasing particle size. However, for soils with large particle sizes, the radon emanation and diffusion coefficient remain almost unchanged with variation in grain size. Comparing five different sized soil particles, the emanation coefficient increased and the diffusion coefficient decreased with moisture content. The radon emanation coefficient reached a constant value with different moisture contents depending on the range of grain sizes. The saturation emanation coefficient for less than 0.1, 0.1–0.2, 0.2–0.3, 0.3–0.5, and more than 0.5 mm sized soil grain ranges are 0.47, 0.42, 0.35, 0.26 and 0.23, respectively, with saturation moisture contents of 16%, 14%, 10%, 6% and 4%, respectively. A drastic increase in radon emanation is found at smaller grain sizes with increasing moisture content. Based on the content of major elements and pH of the soils, the multiple regression indicates that the radon emanation coefficient appears to be significantly dependent on iron content and pH. Effective diffusion coefficient values calculated in our study agree with the results calculated by a previous model. Experimental values show that the temperature dependence of the radon diffusion coefficient follows Arrhenius behavior. [Display omitted] •Experimental apparatuses were designed and used for measuring emanation and diffusion of radon.•We investigated the effect of grain size and moisture content of the soil matrix on the emanation and diffusion coefficients.•Grain size and moisture content have a strong effect on radon emanation and diffusion.•The radon emanation appears to be dominated by Fe/Mn content and pH of soil.•The temperature dependence of the radon diffusion coefficient follows Arrhenius behavior.