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Marco Lima
Lab2PT - Landscape, Heritage and Territory Laboratory/Centro de Investigação Geológica, Ordenamiento e Valorização de Recursos (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, PEst-OE/CTE/ UI0697/2011 and PEst-OE/CTE/UI0697/2014), Campus de Gualtar, School of Sciences, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
Portugal
Carlos Alves
Lab2PT - Landscape, Heritage and Territory Laboratory/Centro de Investigação Geológica, Ordenamiento e Valorização de Recursos (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, PEst-OE/CTE/ UI0697/2011 and PEst-OE/CTE/UI0697/2014), Campus de Gualtar, School of Sciences, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
Portugal
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3943-3340
Jorge Sanjurjo Sánchez
University Institute of Geology “Isidro Parga Pondal”, University of A Coruña, A Coruña, Spain
Spain
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7559-8647
Vol. 38 (2015), Articles, pages 79-91
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17979/cadlaxe.2015.38.0.3684
Submitted: Jul 27, 2018 Published: Oct 28, 2015
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Abstract

Granite can be a rock with significative radioactivity levels due to its content in radioisotopes of K, U e Th. The Braga granite has been extensively used from the past in historical buildings of this city in North Portugal. A gamma radiation assessment has been made in quarry samples of the Braga granite with different weathering degree, in order to assess radiation risks in historical buildings, derived from their content in radionuclides. The specific activities of radioisotopes in 238U and 232Th decay chains and radioactive 40K were measured by gamma spectrometry on samples with different weathering degree. The results were used to calculate the gamma building index (Iγ; EU technical guidance RP112) and other indices to estimate the radiological hazard of the rock as building material. Specific activities are above world averages and all the samples have Iγ >1 (the threshold that implies specific studies for building materials). This result can be especially relevant for historical building where this granite is used as bulk material.

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