Meteorological Approach in the Identification of Local and Remote Potential Sources of Radon: An Example in Northern Iberian Peninsula

Miguel Ángel Hernández-Ceballos (), Natalia Alegría, Igor Peñalva, Jose Miguel Muñoz, Alejandro De la Torre, Fernando Legarda and Giorgia Cinelli
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Miguel Ángel Hernández-Ceballos: Department of Physics, University of Cordoba, 14071 Córdoba, Spain
Natalia Alegría: Department of Energy Engineering, University of the Basque Country, 48013 Bilbao, Spain
Igor Peñalva: Department of Energy Engineering, University of the Basque Country, 48013 Bilbao, Spain
Jose Miguel Muñoz: Department of Industry, Basque Government, 01003 Vitoria, Spain
Alejandro De la Torre: Department of Physics, University of Cordoba, 14071 Córdoba, Spain
Fernando Legarda: Department of Energy Engineering, University of the Basque Country, 48013 Bilbao, Spain
Giorgia Cinelli: Laboratory of Observations and Measurements for the Climate and the Environment, National Agency for New Technologies, Energy, and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA), 21027 Ispra, Italy

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 2, 1-17

Abstract: This paper presents a meteorological approach to identify local and remote sources driving the variability of surface daily radon concentrations. To this purpose, hourly 222 Rn concentration and surface meteorological measurements, and air mass trajectories at Bilbao station (northern Iberian Peninsula) during the period 2017–2018 have been taken as reference. To investigate the potential transport pathways and potential 222 Rn sources, the backward trajectory cluster analysis, trajectory sector analysis (TSA), and potential source contribution function (PSCF) are applied. On average, the diurnal 222 Rn cycle shows the expected behaviour, with larger concentrations during the night and minimum concentrations during the daylight hours, with differences in the seasonal amplitudes. According to daily differences between maximum and baseline values, 222 Rn daily cycles were grouped into six groups to identify meteorological conditions associated with each amplitude, and potential source areas and transport routes of 222 Rn over Bilbao. The trajectory cluster and the TSA method show that the main airflow pathways are from the south, with small displacement, and the northeast, while the analysis of surface wind speed and direction indicates that the highest amplitudes of 222 Rn concentrations are registered under the development of sea-land breezes. The PSCF method identified south-western and north-eastern areas highly contributing to the 222 Rn concentration. These areas are confirmed by comparing with the radon flux map and the European map of uranium concentration in soil. The results have demonstrated the need in combining the analysis of local and regional/synoptic factors in explaining the origin and variability of 222 Rn concentrations.

Keywords: 222 Rn; daily cycle; air masses; TSA and PSCF; Bilbao (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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