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Effect of natural ventilation on radon and radon progeny levels in houses. Rept. for Apr 90-Sep 91

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5893502
; ; ;
The paper discusses the effect of natural ventilation on radon and radon progeny levels in houses. Contradicting the widely held assumption that ventilation is ineffective in reducing indoor radon concentrations, experiments in a research house have shown that the basement radon level can be reduced by a factor of 5 to 10 using only natural ventilation. Measurement of the outdoor-basement pressure differential and the radon entry rate shows that this unexpectedly large reduction in indoor radon levels is caused by two complementary physical processes: (1) the obvious one, dilution, which lowers radon concentrations by adding uncontaminated outdoor air; and (2) although less evident, introducing a pressure break in the system through an open basement window which, in turn, reduces the outdoor-basement pressure differential and the rate at which radon-laden soil gas is drawn into the house. The radon entry rate was found to be a linear function of basement depressurization up to a differential pressure of about 4 Pa, as would be expected for laminar soil gas flow; opening two basement windows approximately doubled the building air exchange rate and reduced the radon entry rate by up to a factor of 5.
Research Organization:
Princeton Univ., NJ (United States). Center for Environmental Studies
OSTI ID:
5893502
Report Number(s):
PB-92-124148/XAB; CNN: EPA-R-817013
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540130* -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
AIR POLLUTION
AIR POLLUTION CONTROL
BASEMENTS
BUILDINGS
CONTROL
DEPRESSURIZATION
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ELEMENTS
FLUIDS
GASES
HOUSES
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION
MONITORING
NONMETALS
POLLUTION
POLLUTION CONTROL
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADON
RARE GASES
RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
SOILS
VENTILATION