Radon mitigation by depressurization of concrete walls and slabs

Abstract

A special laboratory, the Radioisotope Unit Radon Analysis Laboratory, has been built for the study of radon mitigation in high-rise buildings. Reduction of radon exhalation rate from concrete walls as a result of depressurizing the interior of the wall was studied by embedding tunnels in a wall and pumping away the radon in the wall. The reduction in exhalation rate was quantified against the applied depressurization, the separation of the tunnels, the depth of the tunnel, and the thickness of the wall. Results show that radon exhalation rate from a wall embedded with tunnels can be reduced significantly by applying depressurization. For example, the radon exhalation rate from a wall of 20 cm thickness containing tunnels separated by 0.7 m can be reduced by 60% at a depressurization of 67 kPa (20 in Hg). This paper summarizes the effect of depressurization and suggests practical ways of applying the technique in radon mitigation in high-rise commercial buildings.