Radioactivity measurements of coals and ashes from coalfired power plants in the southwestern part of Turkey

Gamma-ray spectroscopic techniques were used to determine uranium, thorium and potassium contents in coal and fly ash samples originated from the southwestern part of Turkey, where an emergency case (because of levels above the alarm set-point in the atmosphere) was announced in February 1993. External radiation doses rates to the population as high as 0.5 μSv h−1 due to the natural radionuclides in fly ashes stemming from coal combustion where estimated on the basis of the experimental results. For the lignite burned by CPPs at Yata an and Milas (Mu la), the concentration ranges (and average values) were 4–25 (16) ppm, 3–16 (10) ppm and 218–596 (49) ppm for uranium, thorium and potassium, respectively. The ash fraction passing through the electrostatic precipitators gave concentration ranges (and average values), for uranium, thorium and potassium, of 21–43 (35) ppm, 10–31 (18) ppm and 252–936 (774) ppm, respectively. Radium-226 concentration range (and average values) in lignite and fly ash samples were found to be 2.3–14.0 (9.1) pCi g−1 and 13–21 (18) pCi g−1, respectively.