Radiation Shielding Applications Research Articles

The effect of high dose rate gamma irradiation on the curing of CaO-FexOy-SiO2 slag based inorganic polymers: Mechanical and microstructural analysis

In search for alternative cementitious materials for radioactive waste encapsulation, geopolymers and inorganic polymers (IPs) have received wide attention. Moreover, Fe-rich IPs offer an interesting alternative to high density concretes for use in radiation shielding applications. Materials can however be altered when subjected to ionizing radiation, creating the necessity to evaluate the material’s behaviour under irradiation conditions. In this study the effect of high dose rate (8.85 kGy/h) gamma irradiation is investigated on CaO-FexOy-SiO2 slag-based IPs. Samples with different curing times (1 h, 24 h and 28 days) prior to the irradiation were irradiated to a dose of 200 kGy using a60Co source.The effect of gamma radiation is observed to be highly dependent on the curing time prior to irradiation. 28 days cured samples are found to be resistant to the irradiation for the dose (rate) and properties tested without any significant change in strength, indentation characteristics, porosity and Fe3+ content. The IPs studied show a different behaviour when irradiated immediately after casting or after 24 h of curing. It is therefore thought that the mechanism behind the effect of irradiation is different for the non-hardened samples compared to hardened samples. For the 1 h cured samples prior to irradiation multiple effects were observed: an increase of the compressive strength by a factor 2.20, a decrease in hardness of the binder by a factor of 0.73, a lower Young’s-modulus of the binder by a factor of 0.67, a decrease of creep in time for the binder by a factor of 0.72, a decrease in porosity by a factor of 0.92 and an increase of the Fe3+/ΣFe ratio by a factor of 1.95.

Rare earth Co-Doped tellurite glass ceramics: Potential use in optical and radiation shielding applications

Six specimens of tellurite glass doped with rare earth with a nominal chemical composition 65TeO2–25Na2O-(10-x)NdCl3-xSm2O3: 0.0 ≤ x ≤ 2.5 mol% were fabricated. The fabrication process was conventional melt quenching. The glasses were coded as TNNS0.0 to TNNS2.5 corresponding to their x value. The glasses' non-crystalline properties were measured using X-ray diffraction. The glasses' UV–Vis data in a 300–1100 nm wavelength were calculated. Using absorption measurements, the optical energy band gap (EOptical) was assessed. The index of refraction (n), polarizability (αmolar), metallization criterion (Mcriterion), molar refractivity (Rmolar), static and optical dielectric constants (εstatic and εoptical), reflection loss (Rloss), and optical transmission (Toptical) were calculated. Results revealed that the indirect optical energy band gap (EIndirectOptical ) changed from 2.94 to 2.80 eV, while the direct one (EDirectOptical) changed from 3.06 to 3.00 eV for TNNS0.0 to TNNS2.5 glasses. Refractive index varied between 2.413 and 2.453. The static dielectric constant changed from 5.824 to 6.017. To inspect the glasses’ radiation shielding characteristics, we simulated their mass attenuation coefficients (MAC) between 0.284 and 1.33 MeV using Geant4 code simulation and Phy-X/PSD software. There was good agreement between the Geant4 and Phy-X/PSD results. The linear attenuation coefficient (μ) values decreased exponentially as the energy increased, ranging from 0.229 to 0.697 cm−1 for TNNS0.0 and 0.256–0.787 cm−1 for TNNS2.5. The addition of samarium oxide (Sm2O3) increased the μ values at all of the energies investigated. The effective atomic number (Zeff) results demonstrated higher photon interactions, possibility due to the increasing Sm2O3 content. The minimum half value layer (HVL) occurred at 0.284 MeV and was 0.881 cm for TNNS2.5and 0.994 cm for TNNS0.0. The tenth value layer (TVL) decreased as the Sm2O3 concentrations increased and increased as the energy increased. TNNS2.5 had the lowest TVL of 2.927 cm at 0.284 MeV and 6.022 cm at 0.662 MeV.

Physical, structural, and shielding properties of cadmium bismuth borate-based glasses

We explore a new glassy material for radiation shielding applications. Novel transparent and non-toxic Bi2O3–B2O3 glasses including different concentrations of CdO were prepared by the conventional melt quenching method. The prepared samples were characterized and analyzed by using various analytical tools (XRD, FTIR, Raman, DSC, and UV-Vis-NIR). Ab initio molecular dynamics simulations were carried out to create structural models of the materials, and these were compared to our measurements. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to compare the vibrations obtained experimentally with the vibrational density of states obtained from an ab initio computer model for these materials. The radiation shielding properties were measured for the photon energy range (10−3–105 MeV): both mass attenuation coefficient (μ/p) and effective atomic number (Zeff) showed a gradual increase with an increase in the CdO content. The mean-free-path, tenth value layer, half-value layer, and electron density for all prepared glasses were estimated. Promising results were achieved with the new glasses for radiation shielding purposes such as nuclear reactor and medical applications. The structural, electronic, and vibrational properties of the computer models revealed a topologically disordered, but chemically ordered network, and our vibrational computations provide direct insight into several Raman peaks observed for the materials.

Chalcogenide glass-ceramics for radiation shielding applications

In this paper, the radiation shielding properties of chalcogenide glass-ceramics with the chemical composition of xCsCl-(100−x)(0.5GeS2-0.5Sb2S3), where 0 ≤ x ≤ 40 mol%, were investigated by using Geant4 simulations, G-P method, and Phy-X/PSD program. Mass attenuation coefficient (μ/ρ), half value layer (HVL), removal cross section (RCS), exposure buildup factor (EBF), mean free path (MFP), and effective atomic number (Zeff) were evaluated to elucidate the radiation shielding competence of the present chalcogenide glass-ceramics. A good agreement was noted between the μ/ρ values of Geant4 simulations and theoretical calculations. At 15 MeV, we found that the HVL values raised from 5.276 cm to 5.728 cm as the concentration of CsCl increased from 0 to 40 mol%. Maximum Zeq values occurred at 1 MeV and were 42.20, 42.98, 43.76, 44.57, and 45.40 for GSC-A, GSC-B, GSC-C, GSC-D, and GSC-E, respectively. The results revealed that the chalcogenide glass-ceramics have radiation shielding properties superior to those of commercial glasses, and traditional concrete.

Optical, structural and gamma ray shielding properties of dolomite doped lithium borate glasses for radiation shielding applications

The elemental analysis of dolomite [CaMg(CO3)] doped glasses encoded DG10, DG20, DG30 and DG40 with different compositions is tested using Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) technique. Next, the surface morphology of fabricated glasses was investigated with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). On the other hand, the optical properties of fabricated the Dolomite additive were evaluated along the wavelength ranged from 300 to 900 nm. At last, nuclear radiation shielding properties of dolomite glasses were determined for gamma-rays. It is observed from the optical absorption spectra that the surface becomes smooth with no agglomerations with Dolomite%30 and %40. In addition, the results showed that Dolomite additive improves the gamma protecting capacity of lithium borate glasses. As a result, it can be referred that a glass sample with the highest Dolomite additive encoded DG40 has better shielding efficiency in terms of radiation shielding.

Bioactive glasses doped with TiO2 and their potential use in radiation shielding applications

Bioactive glasses are used in many tissue engineering and dentistry applications. The unique properties of these glasses make them promising candidates for many potential applications. In this study, a novel bioactive glass system with the structure of 46P2O5–22Na2O-(24-x) CaO–8ZnO-xTiO2 with x in a range of 0–1 mol% (in steps of 0.2) was assessed for use in radiation protection applications. The mass attenuation coefficients (μ/ρ) of the investigated bioactive glasses were estimated using Geant4 simulation at extended energies of 0.015 MeV–15 MeV. The μ/ρ values were confirmed using theoretical calculations based on XCOM software. The half value layer (HVL), effective atomic number (Zeff), and mean free path (MFP) of the bioactive glasses were computed. The energy absorption and exposure buildup factors (EABF and EBF) were assessed using the G-P method at photon energies of 0.015–15 MeV. The removal cross-section (∑R) of the glasses was estimated. The addition of TiO2 in the bioactive glasses changed the glasses’ radiation protection properties. At 1 MeV, the Zeff values raised from 10.75 for T0 glass to 12.17 for T1 glass. The parameters of the present glasses were observed in the same range as materials used for gamma ray and neutron shielding.

Radiation shielding properties of PNCKM bioactive glasses at nuclear medicine energies

A new bioactive glass system with the structure of P2O5-Na2O-CaO-K2O-MgO (PNCKM) was prepared and assessed for use in radiation shielding applications. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope measurements were achieved for the prepared glasses. Gamma radiation shielding parameters such as mass attenuation coefficient (μ/ρ), effective atomic number (Zeff), and mean free path (MFP) were investigated by using Geant4 toolkit at nuclear medicine energies namely; 0.083 MeV emitted from 201Tl, 0.140 MeV emitted from 99Tc, and 0.284, 0.365, 0.637, and 0.723 MeV emitted from 131I. The obtained results are confirmed via the newly developed Phy-X/PSD program. At 0.365 MeV, the Zeff values were 10.31, 10.53, 10.76, 10.99, and 11.24 for PNCKM1, PNCKM2, PNCKM3, PNCKM4, and PNCKM5, respectively. The gamma shielding features of the PNCKM glasses were compared with those of commercial and conventional shielding materials in terms of half value layer (HVL). Moreover, neutron shielding features such as removal cross section (ΣR) were calculated for the prepared glasses and compared with those of standard bioactive glasses. The prepared glasses can be useful to design superior radiation shielding materials as well as to optimize the fabrication of low cost and environmentally friendly shields.

Gamma shielding and compressive strength analyses of polyester composites reinforced with zinc: an experiment, theoretical, and simulation based study

The preparation of materials with high attenuation performance is one of the major issues in the radiation shielding applications. This study is based on the investigation of gamma-shielding performances of various polyester composites reinforced with Zn. Utilizing gamma spectrometer based on HPGe detector, the mass attenuation coefficient (μ/ρ) of the present composites was measured at various photon energies between 59.5–1408 keV. The obtained experimental data were confirmed with those of MCNPX code as well as XCOM program. It is found that the attenuation coefficient values of the studied composites are in good agreement with the results of other approaches at the investigated energies. The best photon-shielding effectiveness was observed in the composite tagged with Zn (10%). The shielding characteristics of composite enhances with the addition of Zn as filler.

Investigation of barium borate glasses for radiation shielding applications

In this paper, five barium borate glasses in the chemical composition of $$40\hbox {SiO}_2$$–$$10\hbox {B}_2\hbox {O}_3$$–xBaO–(45-x)CaO–yZnO–zMgO (where $$x = 0, 10, 20, 30$$, and 35 mol$${y}=z=6\,\hbox { mol}\%$$) have been reported for radiation protection applications. Mass attenuation coefficient ($$\mu /\rho$$) was obtained in the photon energy range of 356 keV–2.51 MeV using PHITS code for the proposed glasses. The $$\mu /\rho$$ values generated by PHITS code were verified by using both of FLUKA code and XCOM program. The $$\mu /\rho$$ values were then applied to derive effective atomic number ($${Z}_\mathrm{eff}$$), mean free path (MFP), and half value layer (HVL) for all the glasses involved. Additionally, the fast neutron removal cross sections were calculated for each glass. The results reveal that gamma-shielding properties evolve upon adding BaO content in the glasses. It is found that SBC-B35 glass has superior shielding capacity against gamma rays and fast neutrons as compared with different conventional shielding materials and commercial glasses.

Radiation sensing properties of tellurite glasses belonging to ZnO–TeO2–PbO system using Geant4 code

In this paper, the optical and shielding properties of TeO2 based glasses with chemical formula (100-x)(TeO2–PbO)- xZnO: x = 15, 17, 20, 22, and 25 mol% for potential use in radiation applications have been investigated. Metallization criterion, the optical electronegativity (Δχ*), the third order nonlinear optical susceptibility (χ(3)), and nonlinear refractive index for all investigated samples have been calculated. Results show that the aforementioned optical properties were depending on the ZnO content in the glass samples. The mass attenuation coefficient (μ/ρ) for the samples are simulated using by Geant4 code in the range of 0.122–1.33 MeV photon energy and compared with the theoretical results using WinXCOM program. The deviation between the theoretical values (WinXCOM) and simulated values (Geant4) is less than 8% and this confirms the accuracy of the present results. The effective atomic number (Zeff), half value layer (HVL), and mean free path (MFP) were evaluated. Moreover, the neutron shielding properties were evaluated by determining removal cross section for each involved glass. Results reveal that the present glasses have lower HVL values than that of ordinary concrete. Therefore, the present glasses can be used as a superior candidate for radiation shielding applications.

Experimental studies on the gamma photons-shielding competence of TeO2–PbO–BaO–Na2O–B2O3 glasses

In this work, glass composed of (40 + x) PbO–5 TeO2–15 BaO–(20 − x) Na2O–20 B2O3 (x = 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 mol%) was prepared via melt-quenching and the gamma-shielding competency was studied. The results showed that the density and molecular weight increased from 5.006 to 7.121 (gcm−3) and 146.579 to 178.823 (g) as Na2O was replaced by PbO. The direct and indirect bandgap energies decreased from 3.512 to 3.357 and 2.791 to 2.525 eV as the lead concentration increased from Pb40Na20–Pb60Na0. We employed the Geant4 simulation code for narrow-beam geometry with a mono-energetic photon beam imposed on a glass specimen. The mass attenuation coefficient (µ/ρ) for the fabricated glass was determined using the Geant4 simulation code. The difference between the theoretical values (XCOM) and simulated values (Geant4) was less than 7%, confirming the accuracy of the present results. The µ/ρ values increased quickly with the increasing PbO content at low photon energies, while increasing the energy reduced the increase of the µ/ρ values. The linear attenuation coefficient (LAC) was also evaluated and the results showed that increasing the density increased the attenuation behavior. The Pb60Na0 sample with the highest density (7.121 g/cm3) had the largest LAC values at all energies (in the range of 0.29–1.69 cm−1). The effective atomic number values of the fabricated samples were in the range of 33–70. Pb60Na0 glass with the lowest half-value layer is a promising candidate for radiation-shielding applications among Pb40Na20–Pb60Na0 glass.

Photon-shielding performance of bismuth oxychloride-filled polyester concretes

The preparation of materials with high attenuation performance is one of the major issues in the radiation shielding applications. This study is based on the investigation of gamma-shielding characteristics of Bismuth (III) Oxychloride (BiClO) doped polymer concretes. In the produced polymer composites, unsaturated polyester, BiClO, methyl ethyl ketone peroxide (MEKP) and cobalt octoate 6% (CO-6) are chosen as resin, filling material, initiators and accelerators, respectively. The radioactive point-isotropic sources 22Na, 54Mn, 57Co, 60Co,133Ba, 137Cs, 152Eu and 241Am with energies varying from 59.5 keV to 1408.0 keV were used and gamma spectrometer based HPGe detector were employed for the investigation. The obtained experimental data were compared with those of FLUKA code results as well as with XCOM results. We found that the attenuation coefficient values of the studied concretes were in good agreement with the results of other approaches at the investigated energies. BiClO (20%), which is the end-point of compositions studied, has the best radiation shielding property among the prepared polyester concretes. The radiation protection performance of unsaturated polyester resin thus improves with the insertion of BiClO as filler.

Mechanical and nuclear shielding properties of sodium cadmium borate glasses: Impact of cadmium oxide additive

In this study, highly effective radiation shielding glass materials with different amount of CdO additive were investigated in terms of nuclear shielding performance. Moreover, mechanical properties have been determined. The μm values were computed using XCOM and XMuDat program. The gamma and neutron shielding parameters such as μm, HVL, Zeff, EBF, EABF, SAFE, bco, bico, σco and σabs are calculated to understand the radiation shielding performances of investigated glasses. The results show that μm, Zeff and σabs values increase as the CdO content increases. The S7 sample has the lowest HVL, MFP, EBF, EABF, SAFE, bco, bico and σco values. Therefore, S7 glass sample (70 mol% of CdO) which has also the highest number of bonds per unit volume can be considered as a superior material for radiation shielding applications. The outcomes of this study can be very useful for future applications of investigated glass materials in medical and industrial radiation fields.

Structure, optical, gamma-ray and neutron shielding properties of NiO doped B2O3–BaCO3–Li2O3 glass systems

In this study, six newly developed glass systems with nominal composition of 50B2O3 − 20BaCO3 – 30Li2O3 – xNiO where (x = 0, 0.01, 0.025, 0.05, 0.1 and 0.15 wt%) have been prepared by conventional melting method. Structure, physical, optical, gamma-ray and neutron shielding features for the prepared samples were investigated. The amorphous nature was tested by using X-ray diffraction measurements for each glass sample. Density and molar volume were calculated. UV–Vis spectra of the prepared samples were observed in the range of 190–1100 nm. Band gaps for indirect transition (EOpticalIndirect) and for direct transition (EOpticalDirect) decreased from 3.02 eV to 1.89 eV and from 3.27 to 2.91, respectively. Index of refraction (n) takes values between 2.38 and 2.74. The static dielectric constant (εStatic) varies from 5.70 to 7.53, while the optical dielectric constant (εOptical) varies from 4.70 to 6.53 for the proposed glasses. Mass attenuation coefficients (μ/ρ) were generated by using PHITS code and WinXCOM program in the photon energy range of 0.015–15 MeV for all prepared samples. The results of PHITS code and WinXCOM program were observed in good agreement. The μ/ρ values were then used to compute the gamma shielding parameters like the effective atomic number (Zeff), mean free path (MFP), electron density (Neff), and half value layer (HVL) for the glasses involved. Additionally, neutron shielding capacity of these glasses was estimated by determining removal cross sections for the fast neutrons. It was found that radiation shielding features were evolved by adding NiO content in the present glasses. It can be concluded that our prepared glasses are superior shields and can be used in radiation shielding applications as compared with different international shielding materials.

Electronic polarizability, dielectric, and gamma-ray shielding properties of some tellurite-based glasses

In this study, five samples of tellurite-based glasses with chemical composition TeO2–ZnO–NiO coded as (TZN1–TZN5) have been reported to investigate their optical and gamma-ray shielding properties. Index of refraction (no), molar refraction (RM), molar polarizability (αM), metallization property (M), and static dielectric constant (e) for all the proposed glasses have been determined. Mass attenuation coefficients (μ/ρ) for the proposed glasses were calculated by Geant4 simulation code and WinXCOM software in the photon energy region 0.001–10 MeV. The obtained values from these methods were compared, and the correlation factor for each glass sample (R2) value was found to be 0.999. Based on the obtained values of μ/ρ and densities of the samples, different γ-ray shielding parameters such as half-value layer (HVL), effective atomic number (Zeff), and mean free path were evaluated. The HVL values for the selected glasses decreased in the order TZN1 < TZN2 < TZN3 < TZN4 < TZN5 and shielding effectiveness for the studied glasses were compared in the term of MFP with some traditional concretes, commercial glasses, and heavy metal oxide glasses. Results reveal that the studied glasses are promising candidates for radiation-shielding applications and can be applied in several of optical devices.

Gamma ray shielding behavior of Li2O-doped PbO–MoO3–B2O3 glass system

In this work, five glasses for radiation shielding applications in the composition of (30 + x) PbO–5 MoO3–(25 − x) Li2O–40 B2O3 (where x = 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 mol%) have been prepared. The density increases from 4.354 to 6.578 g cm−3 and the molar volume decreases from 25.144 to 22.520 cm3 with the replacement of Li2O by PbO. The indirect and direct band gap energies decrease from (2.2870–2.2297) eV and (2.9619–2.8660) eV, respectively, as lead content increases from 30 to 50 mol%. In addition, the refractive index of the samples lies between 2.6214 and 2.6429. Geant4 simulation code has been used to evaluate the gamma photon transmission through the prepared samples. Pb50Li5 sample has lower transmission fraction among the studied glasses. For the 2-cm glass thickness, the transmission fraction of Pb30Li25 sample was found to be 0.433 while at the same thickness the transmission fraction of Pb50Li5 sample is 0.265. At 1173 keV, the HVL values were found to be 1.752 cm for Pb50Li5 and 2.693 cm for Pb30Li25 glasses. At the same photon energy, the MFP values were calculated to be 2.529 cm and 3.886 cm for the Pb50Li5 and Pb30Li25 samples, respectively. Due to the higher Pb content existing in the Pb50Li5 glass, this glass effectively blocks the gamma rays compared to the other samples.

On the physical, chemical, and neutron shielding properties of polyethylene/boron carbide composites

Monte Carlo methods are used for solving difficult stochastic problems in radiation shielding applications. The aim of this paper is to show the possibility of using the Monte Carlo code (MCBEND®) for evaluation and optimization of polyethylene with high boron loadings (for up to 40%) to reach better neutron shielding against fast neutrons (Am-Be neutron source). Boron is incorporated in polyethylene as boron carbide (B4C). MCBEND® (Monte Carlo code developed by ANSWERS) is used to simulate neutron transport through the developed borated polyethylene composites. In order to verify the computer simulations, neutron detection and data acquisition systems have been assembled, modified, and thoroughly tested for shielding efficiency. It is shown that borated composite with 10% of boron content showed the highest experimental mass removal cross section. Moreover, composite formulation with 10% of boron shows optimum density, morphology, mechanical attributes, and thermal stability than that of the neat polyethylene matrix. A comparison of experimental and simulation mass removal cross sections shows that the geometry and physics models proposed in this work are in close agreement, with maximum relative difference of not more than 15%.

Influence of RE oxides (Eu3+, Sm3+, Nd3+) on gamma radiation shielding properties of lead fluoroborate glasses

Authors report the change in lead fluoroborate glass properties with change in RE2O3 (RE = Eu, Sm, Nd) chemical composition. The RE2O3 exhibited improvement in the radiation shielding properties of the glass samples. The gamma rays shielding capabilities of the samples were studied using the WinXcom software (for Eu2O3, Sm2O3 doped glasses) and Monte Carlo simulation (for Nd2O3 doped glasses). The results exhibited that the mass attenuation coefficient (μm), effective atomic number (Zeff), and half value layer (HVL) depends on the concentration of RE2O3 and addition of the same significantly increased the shielding capabilities of the glass samples against gamma rays. The increase in photon energy revealed the decrease in radiation shielding properties. The reported density and radiation attenuation properties of RE2O3 doped lead fluoroborate glasses are predominant in radiation shielding applications which will be useful in high strength structures. Of all the glass samples 2.5 mol% of Eu2O3, Sm2O3 and Nd2O3 doped glasses showed enhanced shielding properties.

Study of environment friendly bismuth incorporated lithium borate glass system for structural, gamma-ray and fast neutron shielding properties.

The present work is aimed at incorporating the heavy metal oxide 'bismuth oxide' in lithium-borate glass system and studying its effect on the glass structure, durability, gamma-ray and neutron shielding ability. The density, XRD, Raman, FTIR, and UV-Visible spectroscopic techniques assisted in understanding the structure of ternary bismuth‑lithium-borate glass system. It has been found that the glass samples are of amorphous nature and structure is mainly built up of BO4, BO3, BiO6, BiO3 units and non-bridging oxygens (NBOs). Bismuth-incorporated glasses possess improved water resistance ability. The gamma-ray shielding ability was evaluated from mass attenuation coefficient, mean free path, tenth value layer and effective atomic number and it was found to be improved with the addition of bismuth oxide content. The exposure build up factor was also computed to account for the secondary photons and multiple Compton scattering. The removal cross section for fast neutrons (∑R) was also evaluated to study the neutron shielding ability of our prepared glasses. The glasses were also compared with barite concrete and commercial shielding glass RS 360 for gamma-rays and, with H2O, graphite, ordinary and hematite-serpentine concrete for checking neutrons shielding ability. It was observed that our glasses have better radiation shielding properties than the compared materials. In the light of these obtained results, it was concluded that the prepared bismuth‑lithium-borate glass system can be utilised for radiation shielding applications.

Extensive study of newly developed highly dense transparent PbO-WO3-BaO-Na2O-B2O3 glasses for radiation shielding applications

Amorphous PbO – WO3 – BaO – Na2O – B2O3 glass system have fabricated using traditional melt quenching method. The XRD and FTIR spectra confirm the amorphous nature and the various structural properties of the glasses respectively. The various optical properties have been measured in the spectral range 400–4000 cm−1. Also, to understand the shielding ability of the fabricated glasses, we used the Geant4 model of a HPGe detector and WinXcom program to calculate the mass attenuation coefficient (MAC) at six energies between 356 and 2510 keV. In order to confirm the agreement between both methods, we used correlation theory and calculated the correlation coefficients (R2) for each sample. It is found that the R2 values are close to 1 for all samples. The MAC values at 356 keV for the prepared samples lies between 0.221 and 0.246 cm2/g. It is found that the usage of different concentration of PbO (from 50 to 70 mol%) affects the MAC values and thus the attenuation ability of the samples due to the heavier density of the PbO in comparison to B2O3. The effective atomic number results showed that Pb70B10 sample (contains 70 mol% of PbO) was higher than the other samples. Hence, Pb70B10 absorbs more photons than the rest of the prepared glasses.