Abstract:
The Jos area of Nigeria has witnessed over a century of active tin mining and related activities, contributing significantly to economic growth. However, the mining of minerals has been found to escalate the presence of heavy metals and natural radioisotopes in the soil, air, and water bodies of the environment. To assess the
Assessing Annual Performance and Degradation Rate of Electrical Parameters in a Monocrystalline PV Module Located in Minna, Central Nigeria . Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM) and heavy metal (HM) burdens resulting from tin mining in the Rayfield-Du area of Jos, we examined soil samples collected from the mining site. The soil samples were categorized as normal soil (S), tailings (T), and mineral soils (M). The specific activities of naturally occurring radioactive nuclei (238U, 232Th, and 40K) and HM concentrations were determined using a well-calibrated HPGe detector-based gamma spectrometric system and Energy Dispersed X-ray Fluorescence spectrometric system, respectively.
Results indicated mean activity concentrations of 323.44, 877.63, and 864.99 Bqkg-1 for 238U; 138.84, 469.31, and 578.65 Bqkg-1 for 232Th; and 168.83, 436.08, and 346.1 Bqkg-1 for 40K in M, T, and S samples, respectively. The calculated radiation dose parameters for the soil samples exceeded recommended safety limits. The external hazard risk (Hext) values were 2.21, 2.81, and 4.44 for S, T, and M samples, while the mean calculated radium equivalent was 819, 1057, and 1645 Bqkg-1 for S, T, and M samples, respectively. The excess life cancer risk (ELCR) estimated for the mine surpassed the world average value. Additionally, the radioecological dose rate estimate for non-human biota in the mine revealed that all non-human species, except lichen and bryophyte, had absorbed dose rates below the 10 µGyh-1 screening dose. Overall, the potential for radiation-induced health defects due to high radiation absorbed dose rates among miners and residents near the mine was found to be substantial.
Furthermore, analysis of eight HM concentrations (Cr, Cu, Zn, Pb, Co, As, Cd, and Ni) demonstrated that they exceeded the Nigerian reference level, with the exception of Co and Ni. The pollution index of the considered HM concentrations for S, T, and M soil classifications was 0.67, 1.49, and 0.71, respectively, indicating low pollution except for T soil, which showed a moderate potential ecological risk index of 56. The corresponding ecological risk indices were 102, 172, and 56 for S, T, and M, respectively.
Assessing Natural Radioactivity and Heavy Metal Concentration in Soil Samples from the Rayfield-Du Mining Site, Jos, Nigeria.  GET MORE, ACTUARIAL SCIENCE PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS
