Speaker
Description
Recent studies indicate that brake wear particles (BWPs) generate large quantities of highly charged aerosol particles, predominantly negatively charged. As traffic-related aerosols represent a major fraction of urban air pollution, their admission indoors may influence the behavior radon decay products. The inhalation dose from radon progeny depends strongly on their attachment to aerosols, which determines their mobility and deposition in the respiratory tract. While the effects of laboratory aerosols (e.g., sulfate, NaCl, or latex particles) on radon progeny have been extensively investigated, little is known about their interactions with real-world anthropogenic aerosols, such as BWPs.
BWPs are characterized by a broad size distribution, high surface area, and electrical charging caused by triboelectric processes. These properties may significantly alter the equilibrium factor and unattached fraction of radon progeny, thus affecting indoor exposure conditions. Furthermore, their metal-rich composition suggests possible synergistic toxicological effects when co-deposited with alpha-emitting radionuclides. The potential impact of BWPs on radon progeny attachment, mobility, and dose distribution represents an important but so far unexplored research field with both radiological and public health implications.
This paper presents a new research project aimed at studying the properties of brake wear particles. The proposed study aims to investigate the influence of break wear particles on radon progeny behavior in indoor air.
Keywords: break wear particles, radon progeny, equilibrium factor
This work was supported by Slovak Research and Development Agency under the Contract no. VV-MVP-24-0227.
| Preferovaná sekcia | Radón a ďalšie prírodné zdroje žiarenia |
|---|