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The mass attenuation coefficient (MAC), effective atomic number (Zeff), and effective electron density (Neff) values of soils in mangrove forests across the Philippine islands were investigated. In addition, ENDF/B-VI.8 cross-section data library was used for interpolating Zeff and Neff values. Photon energies considered in this study ranged from 59.5-1332 keV. MAC values were obtained using MCNP5 and PHITS Monte Carlo (MC) simulations and were found to be in good agreement with XCOM and values in literature. Results for Zeff were in good agreement with values obtained using Phy-X/ZeXTRa program. Each shielding parameter was investigated as a function of SiO2 concentrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Windows-based application software called EpiXS (available at https://www.pnri.dost.gov.ph/index.php/downloads/software/epixs) was constructed for photon attenuation, dosimetry and shielding, and is based on EPICS2017 of ENDF/B-VIII and EPDL97 of ENDF/B-VI.8. The software performs data library interpolation between 1 keV and 100 GeV and calculates partial or total cross sections (σ), mass attenuation coefficients (μ/ρ), linear attenuation coefficients (μ), mean free paths (mfp), half-value layers (hvl), effective atomic numbers (Z eff), electron densities (N eff), and the auxiliary parameters and buildup factors for energy absorption (EABF) and exposure (EBF) via Geometric-Progression, for any user-defined material. It has a user-friendly design and performs quick interactive graphing and data tabulations. Data generated by the software were compared with published results from literature as well as generated results from XCOM and from other programs based on XCOM/NIST libraries. The comparisons were mostly found to agree well, nonetheless the deviations observed may highlight the values from the latest EPICS2017. The EpiXS is introduced as a new tool for instant calculations involving ionizing photon radiation dosimetry and shielding. • Software was made for calculating σ, μ/ρ, ρ, mfp, hvl, Z eff , N eff , EABF and EBF. • All photon energies from 1 keV to 100 GeV can be interpolated. • X-ray absorption edge energies in EPICS2017 and EPDL97 can be viewed. • Data tables can be generated and exported as CSV for MS Excel. • Graphs can be exported as vector image EMF files. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]