SAIP2025

Investigation of the radiation shielding properties of borosilicate glass configurations with varying concentration of Ta$_2$O$_5$, La$_2$O$_3$, and Sm$_2$O$_3$

Not scheduled

20m

Solomon Mahlangu House (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg)

Poster Presentation Track A - Physics of Condensed Matter and Materials Poster Session

Speaker

Mr Bonginkosi Richard Zikhali (University of Zululand)

Description

Ionizing radiation, comprising high-energy particles and electromagnetic waves, is prevalent in medical physics, nuclear research, and reactor operations, posing significant biological risks. Effective shielding is critical to minimize radiation exposure, traditionally relying on dense materials like lead and concrete. Lead offers high atomic number advantages but is toxic, while concrete, though less hazardous, is heavy, prone to structural degradation, and reduces visibility. Glass has emerged as a promising alternative, offering transparency, cost-effectiveness, and durability under harsh conditions. This research evaluates glass compositions for their potential to attenuate ionizing radiation, focusing on the material properties such as mass attenuation coefficient (MAC), linear attenuation coefficient (LAC), effective atomic number (Zeff), mean free path (MFP), half-value layer (HVL), and other radiation interaction parameters, which are determined using the Phy-X/PSD, XCOM and Geant4 software programs. The glass samples studied includes (79-x)SiO$_2$-3Al$_2$O$_3$-5Na$_2$O-13B$_2$O$_3$-xTa$_2$O$_3$, (79-x)SiO$_2$-3Al$_2$O$_3$-5Na$_2$O-13B$_2$O$_3$-xLa$_2$O$_3$, and (79-x)SiO$_2$-3Al$_2$O$_3$-5Na$_2$O-13B$_2$O$_3$-xSm$_2$O$_3$, with varying concentration of Ta$_2$O$_3$, La$_2$O$_3$, and Sm$_2$O$_3$, where x = 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25. The synthesis of these glass samples was carried out at the University of Johannesburg, while the testing of their radiation shielding capabilities was performed at the University of Zululand using the MANDELA facility.