What is ISO 11665‑2- Radon in air measurement about?
ISO 11665 discusses the measurement of radioactivity in the environment. Since radon present in soil can leech into the environment, it can pose a health risk to people who breathe that air. It is important to measure the quantity of radon in this air to determine whether people are safe. ISO 11665‑2 is the second part of the multi-series on measurement of radioactivity in the environment that describes radon-222 associated measurement methods.
ISO 11665‑2 describes integrated measurement methods for short-lived radon‑222 decay products. ISO 11665‑2 gives indications for measuring the average potential alpha energy concentration of short‑lived radon-222 decay products in the air and the conditions of use for the measuring devices. ISO 11665‑2 covers samples taken over periods varying from a few weeks to one year. The measurement method described is applicable to air samples with potential alpha energy concentration of short-lived radon-222 decay products greater than 10 nJ/m3 and lower than 1 000 nJ/m3.
Note: ISO 11665‑2 is not applicable to systems with a maximum sampling duration of less than one week.
Who is ISO 11665‑2- Radon in air measurement for?
ISO 11665‑2 on radon in air measurement is useful for:
- Environmental bodies
- Health and safety inspectors
- Real estate developers / builders
Why should you use ISO 11665‑2- Radon in air measurement?
Radon present in the soil enters the air via diffusion. Over time, the radon concentration in the air can increase, posing a health hazard for people. Radon activity concentrations in the air depend on radon activity concentration in the underlying soil.
To limit the risk to individuals, a national reference level of 100 Bq·m−3 is recommended by the World Health Organization. ISO 11665‑2 deals with the integrated measurement method for determining the average potential alpha energy concentration of its short-lived decay products.
ISO 11665‑2 provides an integrated measurement method to reduce the risk to the overall population, building codes should be implemented that require radon prevention measures in buildings under construction and radon mitigating measures in existing buildings. Radon measurements are needed because building codes alone cannot guarantee that radon concentrations are below the reference level.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS EN ISO 11665‑2:2019 supersedes ISO 11665-2:2012, which is withdrawn. BS EN ISO 11665‑2:2019 includes some editorial changes with respect to ISO 11665-2:2012.
These include:
- Update of the Introduction
- Update of the Bibliography
