Study on radon (222Rn) emanation coefficient and mass exhalation rate from heavy minerals of high specific gravity

A study on 222Rn emanation coefficient and mass exhalation rate was carried out for different minerals having high specific gravity collected from a natural high background radiation area of India. The mass exhalation rate varied from 31 ± 0.5 to 2366 ± 36 mBq kg−1 h−1 and the radon emanation coefficient varied from 1.02 × 10−2 to 2.04 × 10−1. The radon escape probability was highest in garnet mineral indicating the uniform distribution of radium atoms on the mineral surface and smaller grain size than other minerals. Statistical analysis revealed that the radon mass exhalation rate was positively correlated with the 226Ra activity whereas no such strong significant correlation was observed between radon emanation coefficient and 226Ra activity.