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Researchers have tested the potential of various polymer composites for use in radiation shielding. They are light and non-toxic compared to Pb and have potential as shielding in diagnostic radiology where low-energy photons are predominantly used. This study documents the production of four composites using the combination of a base, i.e. high-density polyethylene (HDPE) polymer, and four other elements/compounds, i.e. molybdenum, molybdenum carbide, tungsten, or tungsten carbide. The resulting composites were synthesized in the form of 20 disks, each with a thickness of 2 mm. The disks were irradiated by a kilovoltage X-ray source (1.5 cm2 field size). The mass attenuation coefficient (μ m), half value layer (HVL), mean free path (MFP), and equivalent atomic number of the disks were measured. We found that supplementing HDPE with additives enhanced the attenuation of beams; the μ m values of the composites were higher than that of the pure HDPE polymer. The μ m values of the measurement and calculation results were in good agreement with each other, with an average error of 5.2%. Among the three additive concentrations that were tested, i.e., 5, 10, and 15%, the 15% concentration in HDPE yielded the best shielding efficiency. Since they possess smaller values of HVL and MFP, the polymer composites containing W and WC performed the best at attenuating the radiation beams. • HDPE with Mo, W, MoC, and WC as additives can replace Pb as radiation shield. • Performance of HDPE with three additive concentrations, 5, 10, and 15%, was tested. • HDPE with 15 wt% of additives shows the highest radiation shielding efficiency. • W- and WC-HDPE composites are the best radiation shield against X-rays. • Proposed HDPE polymers are nontoxic, easy to mold, and lightweight. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Materials with high atomic numbers are effective for shielding ionizing radiation. However, some, such as lead, are toxic, and their disposal causes environmental damage. Polymer composites are a good choice for radiation shielding because they are environmentally friendly, lightweight and non-toxic. This study investigated the possibility of using high-density polyethylenhe (HDPE) composites doped with three different materials comprising the carbide (such as tungsten carbide, and molybdenum carbide) and ceramic (silicon carbide) as a kilo-voltage radiation shield. The linear attenuation coefficients of the composites ranged from 0.21 to 2.82 c m − 1 . The measured results are in good agreement with XCOM with an average error of 13.82%. Through meticulous empirical analysis, including the assessment of linear and mass attenuation coefficients, half-value layer (HVL), and mean free path (MFP), our findings suggest that HDPE composites doped with 15% MoC present the most promising configuration for low-energy X-ray shielding (30–50 keV). This work concludes that HDPE composites decorated with MoC and W could be used as an alternative and environment-friendly material for shielding of kilo-voltage X-rays in medical diagnostics and research environments. • HDPE composites doped with WC, MoC & SiC are studied as a kilo-volt X-ray shield. • Measured attenuation properties of the composite show good agreement with XCOM data. • Composite containing heavy metal such as 15% MoC showed the highest attenuation in the 30–50 keV energy. • HDPE + MoC and WC composites offer an alternative for shielding of X-rays in medical fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In respect of radiation exposure assessments, thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLD) represent a notable and important subset of passive detector technology, gaining widespread use over a period of many decades, not least for medical applications. TLDs are available in a range of physical and chemical forms, in particular the popularity of phosphor-based commercial products arising from features that include availability down to low mm dimensions, soft-tissue equivalence in some cases, and relatively low TL fading. Novel doped silica glass TL material fabricated as fibres also offer favourable responses, recent developments in co-doping leading to their ability to also provide for diagnostic radiology applications, adding to the attractive features of being impervious to water, of good sensitivity, and generally offering wide dynamic range. Thus said, doping and fibre fabrication involve relatively high costs. Accordingly, herein exploratory investigations are made of the cost-effective colourless silica-based glass medium from which marbles are made, reduced into chip form for ease of application, examining sensitivity to dose. In particular, the study focuses on the computerised tomography clinical application regime, 80- to 140 kVp, with excellent response being shown for doses within the range 2- to 50 mGy. • Off-the-shelf thermoluminescent silica glass media. • Easily formed into cost effective convenient chip dosimeters. • Elemental and glow curve analysis points to soda-lime glass. • Tested in clinical CT dosimetry applications regime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to discover the impact of the tellurium oxide on structural, physical, optical and radiation shielding properties of borate glass samples modified with BaO and MoO 3. The amorphous nature of each glass sample was proven by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) was utilized to recognize the functional groups for TeO 2 and B 2 O 3. The results exhibit that the rise of TeO 2 ratio raises the density of glasses and decreases their bandgap. On the other hand, the sample BTM3 shows the highest durability results. Moreover, the radiation shielding features were studied for the fabricated glasses by determining the mass attenuation coefficient (MAC) and other related factors. The effect of both B 2 O 3 and TeO 2 on the attenuation performance of the fabricated specimens was discussed. The MAC results show that when we replace the B 2 O 3 with TeO 2 , the MAC increases, which means that the TeO 2 leads to enhancement in the shielding competence of these glasses. At 15 keV, the MAC is 22.39 cm2 g−1 for the free TeO 2 sample, while it is increased to 42.15 cm2 g−1 for the glass with 70 mol% of TeO 2. In addition, when the density changes from 3.4446 to 5.5057 g cm−3, the LAC enhances and changes from 77.14 to 232.05 cm−1 at 15 keV, from 16.81 to 51.81 cm−1 at 50 keV, from 0.309 to 0.511 cm−1 at 0.5 MeV and from 0.096 to 0.211 cm−1 at 15 MeV. The results in this work showed that the current glass samples exhibit good stability that nominates the fabricated samples for different applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]