• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.2222-2229
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• 2023

Radon and radon progeny being natural radioactive pollutants, seriously affect the health of uranium miners. Radon reduction by ventilation is an essential means to improve the working environment. Firstly, the relational model is built between the radon exhalation rate of the loose body and the ventilation parameters in the stope with radon percolation-diffusion migration dynamics. Secondly, the model parameters of radon exhalation dynamics are uncertain and described by triangular membership functions. The objective functions of the left and right equations of the radon exhalation model are constructed according to different possibility levels, and their extreme value intervals are obtained by the immune particle swarm optimization algorithm (IPSO). The fuzzy target and fuzzy constraint models of radon exhalation are constructed, respectively. Lastly, the fuzzy aggregation function is reconstructed according to the importance of the fuzzy target and fuzzy constraint models. The optimal control decision with different possibility levels and importance can be obtained using the swarm intelligence algorithm. The case study indicates that the fuzzy aggregation function of radon exhalation has an upward trend with the increase of the cut set, and fuzzy optimization provides the optimal decision-making database of radon treatment and prevention under different decision-making criteria.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.127-134
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to assess the impact by comparing the concentration of indoor radon and look for ways to lower the concentration of indoor radon gas measurements of three variables, the year of completion, volume of the building and ventilation. Measurement target is six classrooms on the sixth floor of building that was constructed in 1973 and was extended in 2011. Selected classroom's volume is different. Four classrooms were selected to compare the radon concentration in accordance with the year of completion, Classrooms that is same year of completion were selected to compare the radon concentration in accordance with the volume, six classroom was performed closure and ventilation to compare radon concentration according to ventilation. Radon concentrations in accordance with the year of building completion showed a high concentration of radon in a building recently built. Also, Radon concentration in volume is high the smaller the volume. Radon concentration change according to ventilation showed a reduction of about 80% when the ventilation than during closing. Especially, The radon concentrations were high detected while the recently year of building completion and the smaller volume. Ventilation of the three variables is considered that can be expected to exposure reduction effect by radon affecting the greatest radon concentration reduction.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.518-527
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• 2014

Objectives: The adverse health effects attributed to exposure to radon have been well known over the world. However, the efforts for prevention and mitigation of radon have not been taken in Korea so far. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of mitigation methods applied for various types of houses and public buildings with high level of radon. Methods: Based on the results of "National Radon Survey" performed by the National Institute of Environmental Research(NIER) in 2010-2012, we selected 30 candidate buildings consisting of 20 houses and 10 public buildings with greater than $148Bq/m^3$ of radon level. We measured the concentration of radon in 30 buildings, using E-PERMs and RAD-7 during January to March of 2013. More than five E-PERMs and one RAD-7 per house were installed for seven days. Ten houses and five public buildings were finally chosen to be mitigated after mainly considering the level of radon and the location of buildings nationwide. Three mitigation methods such as Sealing, two types of Active Ventilation(window-shaped and wall-typed ventilations), and Active Soil Depressurization(ASD) were applied, and the concentrations of radon were measured before and after mitigation, respectively. To evaluate the effectiveness of mitigation methods, reduction rates of radon were calculated and Wilcoxon's signed-rank test was performed. Results: The mean concentration of 15 buildings just before radon mitigation was $297.8Bq/m^3$, and most of the buildings were located in Gangwon, Chungbuk, Chungnam, and Daegu areas(73.3%), and built in 1959-1998. The level of radon decreased from 48% to 90% and kept the below recommendation limit of $148Bq/m^3$ after installation of radon mitigation. Among mitigation methods applied, the reduction rate(58.7-90.4%) of radon attributed to ASD was the greatest than that of other methods, followed by Active Ventilation(48.4-78.4%) and Sealing(<22%). The effectiveness of radon reduction by window-shaped Active Ventilation(63.2-75.2%) was relatively better than that of wall-typed Active Ventilation(48.4-54.3%). Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that ASD could be more effective for radon mitigation. Moreover, our findings would be background information in future for making the strategy for radon mitigation nationwide, as well as for developing Korean-version of mitigation techniques according to types of dwellings in Korea.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.271-277
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• 1993

Indoor radon has been known as one of the notorious carcinogens. However, a safe environmental criterion of radon has not yet been established in Korea, The main objectives of this study were to study concentration distributions of radon, to trace radon sources in subways, and to obtain a strategy for radon reduction in Seoul metropolitan area. Radon concentrations had been extensively determined by several steps. The first step was to survey radon levels in all of 83 subway stations from October to November in 1991. The second step was to select 40 out of 83 stations and then to study seasonal variations in 1991 and 1992. The third step was to monitor radon levels by hourly-basis plans. The fourth step was to seek a radon reduction strategy by altering ventilation at Ankuk station where had the highest radon concentration during the first measurement step. Each underground floor in the station was divided into 10 sites to measure hourly radon variations. The final step of the study was to measure radon concentrations in groundwater that is one of the possible main sources radon place. The result of the various measuring approaches showed short-and long-term radon variation and indicated radon reduction schemes.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.692-702
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• 2011

For more effective indoor radon reduction policy and technique, we researched radon data analysis for some buildings in Seoul. Those buildings were categorized as dwelling, underground and office space and the variations of radon concentration and its sources were evaluated. The variations of radon concentrations of indoor space of buildings for a day were patterned specifically by dwelling habits and different environment. As for the new built apartments which were not yet moved in, their indoor radon concentrations were showed more than 3 times after applying interior assembly, and were 5 times higher than ones of rather old residences. As for the subway stations, the radon concentrations during off-run times were about 15% higher than run-times. 10% of radon seemed to be reduced by installation of platform screen doors. As for office space, radon concentrations during working hours were about 2.5 times higher than non-working hours. Plaster board are expected as a main source of radon for them. By radon measurement method for long-term, its data can be over estimated because it covers non-active time in office or public space. Therefore combination of short and long-term measurement method is required for effective and economic reduction. Furthermore importance of ventilation is requested as public information service for all dwelling space. And also standardization for radium content or radiation of radon is necessary.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2001.05a
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• pp.139-146
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• 2001

Modern people stay at indoor places about 90% of a day. Radon-222 is a gas produced radioactive decay of the element radium. And, radon is one of the major indoor air pollutants moves into the underground space through various routes and is considered to cause lung c hurting the lung tissues, In this study, we measured the subway radon level at 9 stations o According to test results, we can figure out the concentration of radon by lines, times, and m points. So, it was found that ventilation conditions are the most important factors in the su quality. Finally, we suggested effective and economic management methods of air pollution subway.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2011.05a
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• pp.1306-1312
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• 2011

Underground Subway station's air pollutants are introduced from the indoor or outdoor. And Radon is a major pollutant in the subway station. Radioactive substances Radon is occuring naturally in granite tunnel wall and underground water. Especially inert gas Radon that causes lung cancer in human is anywhere but 5678 S.M.R.T. tunnels deep and pass through the granite plaque have a lot of Radon. The Radon concentration is determined by the following reasons : radon content of soil and concrete, underground water, ventilation, pressure difference, building structure, temperature, etc. So Radon concentration is hard to predict. And we can't only ventilate owing to era of high oil prices. This study focuses on our efforts for the reduction of Radon concentration. And the purpose is to provide basically datas of specially managed 15 subway station's Radon concentration.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.286-295
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• 2022

In this study, the concentration distribution of indoor radon in Daejeon Metropolitan City was investigated and the reduction efficiency was evaluated by applying the radon reduction methods. Based on the results of the National Institute of Environmental Research, indoor radon measurements were conducted on 24 selected houses, and the average value of District A was 261 Bq/m3, far exceeding the standard, and even in the same house, indoor radon concentration was affected by measurement point and time. In the case of eight houses that applied the soil venting method to reduce radon, the indoorradon level was significantly lowerthan the standard value, and the average reduction efficiency was also around 55%, indicating a good reduction effect. In addition, the average reduction efficiency was around 90% in the two houses that carried out the shielding method, showing the very excellent effect of the indoorradon reduction. Even if the same reduction method is applied when reducing radon, the reduction efficiency may vary depending on various factors such as the structure of the building, the frequency of ventilation, and the season, so it is necessary to accurately evaluate the effectiveness of the reduction method in the future. Based on this, it is necessary to establish indoor radon management measures in Daejeon Metropolitan City to reduce human harm caused by radon exposure.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.105-111
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• 2017

In this study, the variation of indoor and soil radon concentrations were measured at a test bed (detached house), and correlation analysis was performed using linear regression. The results showed that the average concentration of indoor radon was increased by about 20% when the heater was operated in the house, but it was decreased by 15% when the ventilation system was on. In the changes of seasonal radon concentrations, soil and indoor radon concentrations in winter were higher than in summer. Statistical analysis showed a weak correlation between the soil radon and indoor radon, but the correlation (R=0.852, $R^2=0.726$) was relatively high at exhaust condition in the winter. It is difficult to extrapolate the results of the study to the general cases because radon distribution is highly site-specific, but the result of this study could be used as a reference for radon management and reduction of detached house in the future investigations.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.37-50
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• 2019

It is possible that radon removal in groundwater of small-scale water supply system (SWSS) is caused by atmospheric storage and aeration facilities installed in the water tank. Radon removal rates at water tank and tap of the 32 SWSS during summer season ranged from -69.3% to 62.7% (average 25.7%) and from -64.3% to 83.1% (average 30.3%) while those of 16 SWSS during autumn season ranged from 21.3% to 78.0% (average 42.8%) and from 17.7% to 66.9% (average 44.8%). The reason of higher radon removal rate in the autumn season compared with the summer season is due to higher atmospheric storage effect by lower groundwater use rate. The radon removal rates at the water tank from 12 SWSS were 47.4~94.0% (average 78.9%), in which the removal rates at the atmospheric storage are also included. Atmospheric storage and aeration can be used to reduce radon concentration in SWSS groundwater. For more efficient use of radon reduction, further studies are necessary to assess the radon removal rate considering variation conditions of radon concentration in groundwater, size and forms of water tank, change in groundwater usage rate, aeration capacity and ventilation facilities.