Radioactivity of coal and ashes from Figueira coal power plant in Brazil

Radiological and instrumental neutron activation analysis determined characteristics of size-fractionated fly ash

“…In many cases, uranium and lead isotopes have been found to be preferentially enriched in finer fly ash particles, while radium and thorium isotopes display weaker trends [5,6]. Similar conclusions have been drawn from the analysis of Greek fly ash, originating in the Ptolemais lignite-burning power plants [7].…”

A Glimpse of Recent Developments in Brazilian Analytical Chemistry

“…Although researchers and=or research groups could be identified in three out of the five geographical regions of Brazil, they are still concentrated in the southeastern region, especially in the São Paulo State, which alone contributes almost 60% of the total published research in the scope of this data collection Brondi and Lanças 2004;Brondi et al 2005;Buchmann et al 2006;Codognoto et al 2004;Franca et al 2007;De Souza 2005;De Souza 2007;Favaro et al 2006;Felix et al 2006a;Figueiredo et al 2006;Flues et al 2006;Kfouri et al 2005;Pereira et al 2004;Rizzutto et al 2006;Rodriguez et al 2006;Salvador et al 2004b;Saueia et al 2005 In the São Paulo State, the research groups are spread across the cities where the main universities and research institutions are also localized. Thus, cities such as São Paulo, São Carlos, Campinas, Araraquara, Piracicaba, and Ribeirão Preto are, each one, centers for environmental analytical chemistry development, together with their research institutions.…”

“…Looking to the techniques more significantly employed, radioanalytical techniques were the most frequent, with neutron activation analysis responsible alone for about 35% of the total Buchmann et al 2006;Franca et al 2007;Favaro et al 2006; Flues et al 2006;Junior et al 2006;Justo et al 2006;Kfouri et al 2005;Menezes et al 2004;Moreira et al 2006;Rizzutto et al 2006;Saueia et al 2005;Silva 2005b;Silva 2006d;Vives et al 2006). They were followed by the atomic (absorption or emission) spectrometries (Amorim and Bezerra 2007;Barbosa et al 2007a;Bezerra et al 2006b;Brasil et al 2005;Dorea et al 2007;dos Santos et al 2007b;Lima et al 2004;Menegario et al 2007;Oliveira et al 2005;Arruda 2004, 2005;Sella et al 2004).…”

Radon diffusion and exhalation from mortar modified with fly ash: waste utilization and benefits in construction

“…Thus, the combustion of coal causes the release of significant amounts of substances containing lead and polonium which are decay products of radon and thoron. Careful consideration should be given to relevant dosimetric calculations for this application [26], as the natural radionuclide concentrations in fly ash produced from coal-fired power plants are significantly higher than the corresponding concentrations in coal and soil [27]. The main problem concerned with the use of fly ash is higher radioactivity content which enhances indoor radon level as compared to brick, cemented and mud houses of same tropical region [28].…”