Dhaka University Journal of Applied Science & Engineering

• Madhurja Sarker
  Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh
• M.M. Mahfuz Siraz
  Health Physics Division, Atomic Energy Centre Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh
• Md. Jafor Dewan
  Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh
• S. Pervin
  Health Physics Division, Atomic Energy Centre Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh
• A.F.M. Mizanur Rahman
  Nuclear Power and Energy Division, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission, Dhaka-1207, Bangladesh
• S. Yeasmin
  Health Physics Division, Atomic Energy Centre Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Radiation can cause harm to the health of the public who stay with various coastlines as sand can contain various types of harmful radionuclides. In this current study, activity concentrations of natural radionuclides226 Ra, 232Th &40K in fourteen sand samples gathered from Kuakata (eight samples) sea beach and Cox’s Bazar (six samples) sea beach are measured through gamma-ray spectroscopy system by means of HPGe detector. The range of activity concentration of 226Ra, 232Th &40K of sand samples from Kuakata sea beach are varied from 24.48 ± 2.17 to 76.14 ± 3.25, from 9.22 ± 2.15 to 46.80 ± 2.17 & from 76.23 ± 12.34 to 458.65 ± 17.04 Bqkg-1 respectively; and from Cox’s Bazar sea beach are from 14.12 ± 2.75 to 75.54 ± 3.15, from 10.28 ± 1.95 to 53.37 ± 2.75 & from 56.42 ± 10.16 to 341.22 ± 14.64 Bqkg-1 respectively. Radium equivalent activity associated with sand samples from Kuakata sea beach is found to be from 61.02 to 163.14 Bqkg-1, and from Cox’s Bazar sea beach is found to be from 49.17 to 153.1 Bqkg-1 respectively. Internal & External hazard indices associated with the sand samples from Kuakata sea beach are from 0.23 to 0.65 & from 0.16 to 0.44 respectively; and from Cox's Bazar sea beach to be varied from 0.17 to 0.62 and 0.13 to 0.41 respectively. The annual effective dose associated with these sand samples from Kuakata sea beach is found to be varied from 0.20 to 0.53 mSvy-1and from Cox’s Bazar sea beach is found to be varied from 0.17 to 0.49 mSvy-1. Artificial radionuclide is not observed in the collected samples. The findings are quite comparable with other countries' similar studies. The findings obtained in this current investigation can be considered baseline database in Kuakata and Cox's Bazar sea beach for the radiological protection of people

1. S. R. Chakraborty and M. K. Alam, "Assessment of natural radioactivity in the sea-beaches of Bangladesh", Radiation Protection and Environment, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 6, 2014.