Modeling and experimental validation of the dispersion of 222Rn released from a uranium mine ventilation shaft

Radon (222Rn) found in uranium mine shaft ventilation exhaust gases could pose hazards to the surrounding environment and the public by virtue of its progeny. Radon migration under complex terrain is complicated by pollution source characteristics, geographical features of the dispersion region, meteorological conditions and precipitation. Fluid dynamics computations of 222Rn dispersion are performed for uranium mine shaft exhausts for complex models of the actual physical terrain corresponding to a mine in the Jiangxi Province of China. The eight cases studied included a ventilation shaft source, four downwind velocities (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0 m s−1) and two underlying surface roughness characteristics (0.1 m, 1.0 m). 222Rn distributions in the vicinity of uranium mine ventilation shaft are computed and compared with field measurements.