Research Reactor Institute, Kyoto University, Kumatori-cho, Sennan-gun, Osaka, Japan
Abstract:
Studies on the 222Rn content of groundwater were conducted to obtain knowledge of its distribution in the geosphere just below ground surface and below the depth of 100 m in the Osaka Group (Plio-Pleistocene). Samples analyzed from ten bore holes within 10 m depth below land surface showed that a sandy layer contained groundwater with consistent radon concentrations except for a few locations where the variations in the water level were large due to precipitation and/or the water level was within 2 m of ground surface. The average 222Rn concentration in groundwater within 10 m of land surface was found to be approximately equal to to of the highest concentration found in groundwater from a well penetrating 100–200 m (420 pCi/l?1).