226Ra and 228Ra in scale and sludge samples and their correlation with the chemical composition

In order to contribute to a future waste management policy related to the presence of technologically enhanced natural occurring radioactive material (TENORM) in the Brazilian petroleum industry, the present work presents the chemical composition and the (226)Ra and (228)Ra content of sludge and scales generated during the offshore E and P petroleum activities in the Campos Basin, the primary offshore oil production region in Brazil. The (226)Ra and (228)Ra content on 36 sludge and scales samples were determined by gamma-spectrometry. Based on X-ray diffractometry results, a chemical analysis schema for these samples was developed. The results have shown that scales are 75% barium and strontium sulfates, with a mean (226)Ra and (228)Ra content of 106 kBq kg(-1) and 78 kBq kg(-1), respectively. On the other hand, sludge samples have a much more complex chemical composition than the scales. The (226)Ra and (228)Ra content in sludge also varies much more than the content observed in the scales samples and ranged from 0.36 to 367 kBq kg(-1) and 0.25 to 343 kBq kg(-1), respectively.     

Propolis efficacy on SARS-COV viruses: a review on antimicrobial activities and molecular simulations

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This current study review provides a brief review of a natural bee product known as propolis and its relevance toward combating SARS-CoV viruses....     

Natural radioactivity in Brazilian groundwater

More than 220 groundwater samples were analyzed for 228Ra, 226Ra, 222Rn, 210Pb, U(nat), Th(nat), pH, conductivity, fluoride and some additional elements determined by ICP-MS. Since samples from several Brazilian states were taken, involving areas with quite different geologies, no general trend was observed relating the chemical composition and the natural radionuclide content. On the other hand, 210Pb strongly depends on the water content of its progenitor, 222Rn. The values obtained during the present work were compared with those reported by Hainberger et al. [Hainberger, P.L., de Oliveira Paiva, I.R., Salles Andrade, H.A., Zundel, G., Cullen, T.L., 1974. Radioactivity in Brazilian mineral waters. Radiation Data and Reports, 483-488.], when more than 270 groundwater samples were analyzed, mainly, for 226Ra. Based on the results of both works, it was possible to build a database including the results of both works, generating a set with the radium content of circa 350 groundwater sources. It was demonstrated that 228Ra, 226Ra, 222Rn, 210Pb and U(nat) content in Brazilian groundwater follows a lognormal distribution and the obtained geometric mean were 0.045, 0.014, 57.7, 0.040 BqL(-1) and 1.2 microgL(-1), respectively.