Assessement of The Radionuclides Activity Concentration in Some Sharp Sand Commonly Used in Benue State, Nigeria

This study assessed radionuclides (238U, 232Th and 40K) activity originating from naturally occurring radioactivity in some selected sharp sand used in Benue State. Four different sharp sands, were selected. The samples were crush to a grain size of 1mm and weighed 5 grams at Civil Engineering Department, Joseph Saawuan Tarka University, Makurdi, and were moved to National Institute of Radiation Protection and Research (NIRPR), University of Ibadan, Nigeria, where the samples were analyzed using NaI(Tl) detector. The concentration of the selected radionuclide in each sample was obtained and the result for sharp sand shows that the activity concentration of 238U and 232Th in the selected samples ranged from 0.24±0.02-0.33±0.01 Bq/kg and 3.35±0.01- 3.96±0.04 Bq/kg respectively, which were both below the respective set standards of 50 and 30 Bq/kg by UNSCEAR, 2000. Result of the concentration of 40K in sharp sands sample shows that activity concentration of 40K was higher (946.75±12.21 Bq/kg) in OSSD sample than the recommended of 400 Bq/kg by UNSCEAR, (2000). The study concludes that, activity concentration in sampled sharp sand used in Benue State are radiologically safe except OSSD sample in which 40K was above the recommended standard of 400 Bq/kg by UNSCEAR, (2000).