Effect of iron and ferrosilicon materials to enhance the radiation shielding ability of bentonite clay.

This study focuses on enhancing the attenuation properties of bentonite clay using powdered iron and ferrosilicon. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis were used to characterize the prepared samples. The linear attenuation coefficient was calculated experimentally for the prepared samples using a NaI scintillation detector and four radioactive point sources (Am-241, Cs-137, Co-60, and Eu-152). These results were in good agreement with the compared with the XCOM results. Other radiation shielding parameters, such as the half-value layer, mean free path, and radiation protection efficiency, were determined. Furthermore, at a photon energy of 0.06 MeV, the half-value layers were 0.276 and 0.628 cm for bentonite–iron and bentonite–ferrosilicon, respectively. The results indicate that the radiation shielding efficiency of bentonite–iron composites is better than that of bentonite–ferrosilicon composites at low and intermediate gamma-ray energies. • The shielding capability of the pure bentonite clay and the clay with additives. • Using X-COM data to confirms the accuracy in the setup used in this study. • Iron or ferrosilicon as additives in the clay improve the attenuation coefficients. • Additive type at the same concentration effects the radiation protection efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]