Enhancement on radiation shielding performance of B2O3 + Li2O + ZnO + Na2O glass system

Three borate glasses with the chemical composition 50B(2)O(3) + xLi(2)O + 20ZnO + (30 - x) Na2O (where x = 5, 10, & 20 mol. %) and coded as BLZN-A, BLZN-B, and BLZN-C were reported and investigated for their gamma-ray, charged particle (electrons, protons, alpha particles and carbon ions), and neutrons shielding viability. The gamma ray attenuation coefficients were computed by the FLUKA simulations and XCOM methods, while the stopping powers and range of the particles were evaluated based on SRIM software and NIST database. The obtained results showed that gamma-ray and charged particle shielding ability increases for the present glass samples in the order of BLZN-A < BLZN-B < BLZN-C for radiation energies of 0.01-10 MeV. The removal cross section corresponds to 0.106, 0.1087, and 0.1132 cm(-1) for BLZN-A, BLZN-B, and BLZN-C, while the total cross section for thermal neutron is 69.91, 71.46, and 73.83 cm(-1). The shielding performance of the glasses is higher than those of some conventional shields such as ordinary concrete and commercial glass shields. Thus, the present BLZN glass system have huge potential for practical applications in hospitals and nuclear facilities.

Automated summary

The study found that the shielding performance of BLZN glass samples for gamma rays and charged particles is in the order of BLZN-A < BLZN-B < BLZN-C, and they also exhibit good shielding performance for thermal neutrons.