Ceramic tiles doped with lead oxide nanoparticles: Their fabrication, physical, mechanical characteristics and γ-ray shielding performance

Novel ceramic tile/lead oxide nanocomposites were designed and assembled based on doping standard ceramic tiles with lead oxide nanoparticles to serve as promising alternative candidates for gamma-ray shielding. Various techniques were used to examine the structural properties of the newly formed lead oxide nanoparticles-doped ceramic tile composites including Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometer (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), and Field emission-transmission electron microscope (FE-TEM). The main parameter tested in order to characterize the mechanical properties of the newly formed nanocomposites was the modulus of rupture. Since the doping material used in this study was lead oxide nanoparticles, it was found that as its content increased in the ceramic body from 0.0 to 10.0 wt%, the modulus of rupture increased from 1.753 +/- 0.07 to 2.674 +/- 0.11 MPa, respectively. The curvature of the tiles' edges, the percentage of water adsorption, and their bulk density were among the physical properties examined. The mass attenuation coefficients of the tested samples were evaluated at different gamma-ray photon energies (from 59.53 to 1332.50 keV), in terms of the weight percentage of lead oxide nanoparticles. To confirm the gamma-rays shielding capabilities of assembled nanocomposites, other shielding parameters were computed, including the mean free path, the effective atomic number, the half value layer, and the effective electron density. It was found that the ceramic tile containing 10.0 wt% lead oxide nanoparticles had the highest value of mass attenuation coefficient, effective atomic number, and effective electron density and the smallest value of half value layer and mean free path, with respect to all studied nanocomposites. This results proved that as the lead oxide nanoparticles content of ceramic-tile nanocomposites increased (from 0.0 to 10.0 wt%), so did their gamma-ray shielding ability. Finally, it can be concluded that ceramic tile-loaded-lead oxide nanoparticles exhibited significant improvements in the gamma-rays shielding parameters compared to that filled with bulk lead oxide under the same weight percentage.

Automated summary

Novel ceramic tile/lead oxide nanocomposites were assembled and characterized for their structural and mechanical properties, with lead oxide nanoparticles enhancing the modulus of rupture as their content increased. The physical properties of the composites, including curvature of edges, water adsorption, and bulk density, were examined. Lead oxide nanoparticles significantly improved the gamma-ray shielding abilities of the ceramic tile composites, demonstrating potential for applications in radiation shielding.